The Legend of Zelda: Lei's Crystal
by DigiTails
Summary: When Link and Zelda meet again after seven years strange things happen. Zelda is kidnapped and brought to a far away land to bring Ganon back. To free Zelda in time Link has to fight an old foe, but can he truly beat it now? HINTED: Link & Zelda. CHP 20
1. Prolouge

Heya folks. This is, Digi. Yeah, I've got a million stories to work on, I know. I really shouldn't be starting another one right now. Oh well. Hopefully you found this on your own free will. Even better is if you liked the preview on dA and came here to read the story. One can only hope.

Anyways, I started writing this nearly last year. There's bound to be a huge jump change in the middle of the story as I continued writing from my hiatus several months back. Hopefully in flow and style, all for the better. I've checked this many times, but don't hesitate to point out a mistake, honestly it would make me feel le spiff.

Also, in the middle of this chapter I had to start over fresh, so eh, yeah. You might be able to notice the change...then again, with the severe edits, I dunno if you would. (Oh, I do know that the bunny hood in OoT does not give you speed boost...)

Uh, my normal text is basic this time. Nothing unusual.

I'm trying something new though. I'll be updating each chapter in sections. Each chapter will be added on whole and complete , but the sections are to break it down into more manageable parts, I hope. Please let me know if you do or do not like this new system. Enjoy the story.

The Legend of Zelda and all subsequent characters are not mine, I do own the plot and a few minor characters that will pop in, don't worry, they don't play huge roles in the plot. (Except the bad guy and his henchman, but I didn't like the canon baddies for this one)

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**_Prologue- Leaving for Somewhere New_**

A blue light flared in a circle around a small pedestal in a room of an ancient marble temple. The light faded and receeded down into the white stone from which it had formed. A boy stood there. He wore a forest green tunic and a leather belt neatly wrapped around his waist. Grasped in the ten year-old's hand was the navy hilt of a broadsword. The blade of the sword was stuck inside the pedestal.

But this wasn't just any sword; it was the Master Sword, the blade that could slay any evil. It was powered with the feelings of justice, courage and truth that came from its chosen wielder. That was the boy and he was the Hero of Time. He was one who would become famous in the days to come so that even the children he had grown up with would know in their sacred forest.

He stepped off the pedestal that the sword was recently jammed into, one with black markings on it in the shape of three triangles at the corners of a much larger one. His leather boots touched the floor. He stared at the blade with a deep sense of regret. Suddenly the fairy near him glanced down at him, a motion covered by the strong blue glow she emitted.

"Hey! I was only told to help you while you saved Hyrule. Later, Link!" Link closed his eyes as the female fairy left him. A trail of glowing yellow powder fell in her wake as she ascended to the window that cast light onto the sword.

Link sighed and reached a hand out for the sword, touched the blade and made up his mind. Without the fairy he couldn't fit back in his small village. That didn't even matter, because he wasn't Kokiri now that the magic of the forest had left his body. He would grow up and be shunned in a small case of years. That was the assumption he had run under since he had found out he was Hylian. He would never fit in Hyrule. He had never spoken to anyone. Besides, he would attract too much unwanted attention. No, he was going to leave. It would be too problematic to stay.

With that thought in mind he turned away from his sword- no that wasn't right, it wasn't his sword anymore. He turned from the Master Sword and walked out of the room and walked through the door, taking his time going down the steps as he left what had made him into what he was behind him. A small sound of otherworldly properties resonated near him and he looked at the three whirling gems: the Kokiri Emerald, Goron Ruby, and Zora Sapphire. He nodded to himself and pulled the stones off the pedestal they floated above. It hurt to touch them at first, but then the painful magic surrounding them faded and he shoved all three into pockets that were too small for them. A stone door slammed shut once the stones were removed from the pedestal, sealing off the chamber with the Master Sword.

He appreciated, like always, his magical abilities that allowed him to make the pockets inter-dimensional, so he was allowed to carry more things in his pockets. This weighed him down considerably less in battle. He would give those stones back to the people he had borrowed them from. It was for the best. That way no one could ever get to the Master Sword, or the Triforce that the room led to. He ambled along a rich red carpet to the exit of the building. He stepped onto a raised triangular platform made of white marble. Painted in black on the surface were three smaller triangles that were arranged to form a much larger triangle with a triangle shaped hole in the center. The platform jogged his memory. He looked down, tapped his foot twice on the surface.

He reached into the shirt part of his tunic and pulled out a small wooden instrument, an ocarina. He smiled because it was a gift from a friend, but he'd have to leave without telling her for he could never have said good-bye. He lifted the musical device to his lips and played a haunting melody. Strawberry blonde bangs rested on the wood. Dark purple motes of light surrounded him as he continued the song. Suddenly he was absorbed into the particles the song created and they left through the roof of the Temple of Time.

They came to rest on a similar platform. He glanced behind him; there was an entrance nearby. He closed his eyes, remembering the torment and harrowing experience that had been offered to him behind the walls of the Shadow Temple. He grimaced to himself and turned around. A black iron fence greeted his vision. He quickly hopped over the fence and landed crouched on the ground ten feet below. His joints groaned from the sudden shock of the landing.

He put the thoughts behind him, stood up and walked through a graveyard. Silently, he paid his respects for the dead, glad that there were no ghosts to haunt him here. He moved under a wooden sign that read Kakariko Grave and through the winding valley to the town.

He stared up at the blue sky and pulled a small headband out of his pocket. The fluffy ears adorning the band, similar to those of a rabbit's, flopped onto his small hands. He set it on the green cap that covered his blonde hair, and felt energy and the need to run course through his veins. He stretched his legs and ran.

His steps were light and quick. He ran past a rock wall, the small village that greeted him, down a flight of steps, across a grassy field, by a hotel and up a long flight of stairs that hugged a wall. He turned and ran up a set of stairs that divided two homes that would later become two shops.

He noted the guard, and sprinted past him into the volcanic valley. He bypassed several jumping spider like things and ran past a tunnel, once more remembering the trials he had gone through in Dodongo's cavern. He had helped a race of people, and saved them as well. That made him feel better about what he was about to do, but only marginally. He continued his path and came by a narrow strip of cliff edge that afforded him a view of the town nearby and reminded him of how high up he was. Being more cautious he took his time, barely avoiding a flying brown boulder that threatened to run him over. He slammed back into the cliff face behind him and slid down onto his rear evading the rock.

Getting up he continued down the narrow trail, staying near the cliff wall until it disappeared to his left as the area he could walk on became wider. He walked down a gentle slope to a tunnel that had several multi-colored flags around its entrance. He walked through and was greeted by the sight of a warm cavern beyond. Quietly and stealthily he walked along, another boulder shifting as Link neared it. It uncurled itself into a living creature lazily.

"Hey, Link! Big Brother's looking for you."

Link nodded and ignored the Goron; the last person he wanted to see right now was Darunia. Once he saw the Goron curl back up he sidled carefully along a narrow wooden beam that shifted and bent under his weight. Several others like it held up a small rock platform. Standing upright on the far side of the platform was a gray tablet. It was inlaid with the shape of the Goron Ruby. Link checked and made sure no Goron near him was up and placed it inside. The stone fit perfectly and a small seal formed around it.

Link crept back up the beam and sighed gratefully when he was on solid ground. Despite all he had ever been through he still thought that to be the most harrowing experience of them all; that and seeing Darunia dance.

"Brother, I was wondering when you would come back!"

"Speak of Ganon and he'll come," thought Link as he looked behind him at a Goron that was different. He had a wild look about him and a bracelet around his wrist. Link looked back at the exit and ran as fast as he could away. He heard a curling sound from where Darunia was and knew one thing: he couldn't outrace a Goron, not on his life. He pulled the bunny eared headband out his pocket and placed it on, doubling his speed. It wouldn't be enough to outrace the Goron, but it should be enough to get him where he was going.

As he came to the narrow path he continued to run and jumped with all his might to the cliff face as soon as he could. The rabbit hood augmented his power and he reached twice his height, he grabbed the ledge and scrambled up to safety. Darunia passed by where Link's feet dangled, but noticed and was able to stand and look at Link just in time to see the small child pull out the ocarina again.

Link played another tune. Putting the instrument hastily to his lips he played a short serenade. Blue white motes came and fetched him as he finished the song. Darunia stared in wonder. Did this mean that Link no longer wanted to be his Sworn Brother? The idea made him depressed. He went to lock himself up in his room for a few days.

Link, however, was miles away by that point. A moment after disappearing, he landed on a small island in the middle of a large lake. Underneath him was yet another platform. He looked around and walked to the edge of the island, which abruptly turned into water. Under where he stood was the Water Temple, the most confusing place he had ever been to. He placed the band back into his pocket and readied himself and dove cleanly into the surface.

He surfaced, took a breath and swam across the lake, barely staying afloat due to the shield he wore on his back. However, the shield forced him to swim a sidestroke on his right side. Soon he reached four spires that pinned the corners of a small marble platform under the water. He took a small golden scale from under his belt and placed it under the gold glinting bracelet on his left arm. Taking a deep breath he turned under the water and propelled himself down to the bottom of the lake.

He opened his eyes and saw a small tunnel in the marble. Link pushed himself forwards and tagged a blue panel that blocked the tunnel. The small blockade burst and sent a powerful current that rushed him in seconds to another place altogether. Feeling like his lungs were going to burst a minute later he broke through the surface and coughed, taking deep ragged breaths.


	2. Prolouge 2

He was in a small cavern, the bottom was filled completely with water. Link could spot several strange silver creatures swimming nearby. They wore no clothes, not needing to. They had dark blue spots and long graceful fins. They were by far his favorite race aside from his own and the Kokiri. He looked around and spotted a young female of the Zora, their princess, Ruto. She was standing on ground several yards away from him, and didn't see him. He grinned to himself and pulled the sapphire out of his pocket. He had been meaning to do this for a while. 

He wasn't malevolent, but after Ruto had forced Link to carry her through the belly of a giant fish that had swallowed them both to get her stone back and then claimed she had helped him although she herself hadn't lifted a finger. That had angered him. He had wanted the stone though, but that didn't nearly make up for it. He had thought that he was never going to stop smelling like fish juices and fish bile. He had been electrified, which hurt quite a lot; thankfully he'd had a fairy or two to take care of the pain. Then she had gone around claiming to be his fiancee.

So, fairly peeved, he chucked the stone at Ruto. He had dead aim and it hit her square on the head a moment later the stone clattered to the ground. All the Zora near Ruto started looking around for the attacker, but he was gone, having swum back down to the tunnel, tagging the stone face and was sent hurtling back to the lake.

Ruto just broke up crying. She knew who the stone had come from the instant she had seen it. The stone was the Zora Engagement Ring she had given to Link. She had fallen in love with him, and was fairly obstinate about the fact that she was going to marry Link with her father. She had thought he felt the same, but now he was giving it back to her, and quite meanly too. What had she ever done to wrong him? She went to her room to bawl inconsolably for the next few days.

Link, on the other hand, was quite happy to be rid of the stone. Now all he had was to dodge Ruto for a long while, but that wouldn't be too difficult, not for him. Since he was planning to leave. That's why he was going around like this. He hated to think of hurting Darunia's feelings, but it just had to be done, and he couldn't explain himself, not really, not without his fairy. Ruto, he didn't quite care about.

He swam to the lake's edge with the conviction, and expression, of someone being brought to a gallows. He brought the ocarina to his mouth again, one last song to play, one last thing to be done with. This would hurt his feelings the most if he had to run from anyone. He played a song and instantly a yellow pillar of blinding light surrounded him and he was warped through time to night.

Then he played another song. He didn't put his heart into it, knowing what it would mean to play this. Link was whisked away with white-green motes of light to yet another place. He found himself to be in a forest. The young child grimaced, didn't bother to look behind him, and walked forward. He found himself in a narrow passageway and ducked, letting his shield take the blows of some strange nut being blown at him. He crawled forward and continued to crawl even when he came to a set of stone stairs until he was half way down. He stood, rubbed his sore belly, decided the temporary pain was preferable to bruises and went down the stairs the rest of the way.

He climbed up a latter at the base of the weatherworn stairs and stepped atop a rocky platform. The rock had been carved to make a life size maze that Link preferred to skip. He ran and bounded over the maze. Link jumped down into a small pile of growing plants, walked through them, leaves brushing against his legs and sometimes his torso.

He stared up at a large hollow log. Link shook his head and wound his way through a complex set of small areas blocked by trees. If one went the wrong way they would be led into the forest beyond and down a narrow trail that led to a small village. But the correct way was much faster.

Soon he came to the edge of a cliff and climbed down some vines that grew on the face. It was the dead of night; everyone was in their houses made of hollowed fallen trees from the forest. He was grateful that no one was up to see him. These were the people he had grown up with, leaving them behind would be the most difficult.

Link climbed down and walked silently about a house, and once he was clear, ran over to the stream that ran through the forest and deposited itself into a small lake which the magical grounds he had grown up in absorbed. He jumped onto a block that had been pushed into the lake that made two places accessible, the local joke, a shop, and the grounds of the Great Deku Tree. Link wondered if Navi, his fairy companion that had left him, was there. He jumped across to the patch of ground that led to another narrow path in the trees. He walked through the winding trail and came to see a large tree. It had a face.

Not only that, it was gray, dead. There was a hole in it on the side facing Link and leaves of red and orange hues were scattered on the ground, a thick carpet. Link let go of the breath he had been holding since he had entered the trail, and walked over to the tree's trunk. He placed a hand on the bark and a sorrowful expression crossed his face. He had hoped that by sealing Ganon into the Sacred Realm the tree would be restored, but it wasn't. His hand ran over a gap in the bark, showing the brown wood underneath. The hole had been hewn by a sword to make a shield that he wore under the metal one.

"Rest in peace, Great Deku Tree." His soft, gentle voice broke through the still air. Not many had ever heard him speak, and the ones who had lived in this forest.

He nodded to himself and jumped along the blocks that led to the far side of the pond, doing a flip to the ground on the other side. Continuing silently, he continued to the exit of the forest on the other side of the peaceful village. It was a larger moss covered log that was the only physical connection to the outside world. The log was surrounded, like the rest of the village, by a thick border of trees.

Link walked through the log and came to a bridge. He stopped short, on the bridge were two people. One was a young Kokiri girl with bright green hair, another was a boy with ruddy red-orange hair. They were leaning against the rope sides of the bridge. They turned to look at him at the sound of his footsteps.

"Link, we're glad to see you. We saw you going to the Great Deku Tree's resting place. Why'd you come back?" the girl asked cheerfully smiling at him. Link shook his head at her. "You aren't leaving again, are you?" Link cast his gaze down at the ground. He couldn't bring his eyes to meet them.

"Well, that's all right, I guess." Link looked up at the other kid as he spoke, "You've already lost your fairy, haven't you? Not only that, but you left the forest, and you're still alive. You can't be a Kokiri." The girl turned to face him, and he avoided their eyes by staring at the ground under the bridge. "But you're still our friend, half person."

Link grinned at Mido, eyes lighting up mischievously, and feigned a punch at him, stopping several inches from the arm he faked the hit at. Mido looked up and grinned at Link. The girl spoke up again. "You will come back again, won't you? Even if you aren't a Kokiri, you'll still be welcome."

Link sighed and dropped his arm. Slowly, he shook his head. Saria took three quick steps and hugged him tightly. Mido gave Link's blinking face an irritated glance. Saria barely ever shook his hand or anything. Why did Link get to be hugged? She let go after a few seconds.

"Then don't forget us, okay?" Link nodded and turned to Mido, he held out his hand. Mido shook it, albeit reluctantly. Link strode past them.

He was about to walk out, but he couldn't. He couldn't leave them like that. He pulled something out from the front of his tunic and tossed it to Mido. It was a beautiful gold-wood boomerang with a ruby surrounded by silver placed at the point on the bottom and top.

"Good-bye. I'll never forget any of you."

Mido and Saria examined the boomerang curiously. When they looked back at where Link had been, no one was there.

Link had walked through another log when his two friends were distracted. He came to a narrow valley with lively trees growing out of it. Tears loomed in his eyes. He had never wanted to say that to any of the Kokiri, not even Mido and especially not Saria. The tears disappeared as his situation sank in and battle-ready instincts took over.

Small kid shaped skeletons dug out of the ground around him and came towards him. He didn't want to play with them, he simply didn't have the time, so he placed the bunny hood on his head again and ran.

He ran the rest of the night and most of the next morning to Kakariko village, not understanding himself why he didn't warp, he just wanted to waste the time and think, he guessed. He ran across a bridge and up the L-shaped stairs to the village. He ran through the wooden gates that led to the village he had been in just a day before. He crept along in the shadows. He walked up a flight of stairs that was just under a building in construction on his left. To his right was a red house with purple shingles. He walked to the door, knocked and let himself it.

A dark musty gloom penetrated the air inside the house, catching the breath in Link's chest. He continued to the center of the room and jumped backwards as a misshapen Skultulla fell down where he had been. It twitched in pain. Link pulled a small golden Skultulla head shaped medallion out of his pocket. He pressed it into the Skultulla's face. A golden mist permeated the room. The medallion disappeared and before him now stood an adult, in the five corners of the room stood five young boys. The man gratefully smiled down at Link.

"Thank you for breaking all one hundred spiders of the curse. Here." He gave Link a Gold Rupee. Link nodded up at the man and walked out. This would help. He didn't need anything else. He had done that merely to have the rupees to get supplies. He walked out of the house, and shoved the large rupee into a leather bag tied near his waist. He pulled the gold scale out from under the bracelet and shoved it into a side pocket of the bag.

Link wandered back to the entrance of the town, fully intending to leave for another part of Hyrule. However, that wasn't to be. A female came up behind him and called his name.

"Link. The Princess was looking for you. I thought you'd be here."


	3. Prolouge 3

"Link. The Princess was looking for you. I thought you'd be here." Link turned around, shocked to say the least, to stare up at the Sheikah. He just stared at her, placing a hand on his side. "She wants to talk with you." Link shook his head, it wasn't possible, and the strange woman with gray hair let out a small breath of faint irritation. "You are leaving aren't you? She said you'd do that." 

Link shrugged, there was nothing he could do about that. All he knew is that he really wanted to get out of Hyrule and leave before he could become famous. Link knew he'd probably get some form of attention. He tended to shy away from the limelight. He started to turn, assuming that the conversation was over with, so that he might be able to leave Kakariko village.

However, Impa had other plans for Link. "Link, Zelda has expressed a strong wish to see you before you leave."

Link hesitated and stopped in his tracks. It was hard for him to say good-bye, but Zelda was a friend, and he knew he would regret not saying good-bye. Slowly and reluctantly he nodded his head. Impa placed a hand on his shoulder and threw a Deku nut onto the ground. During the bright flash of light she disappeared, taking the young hero with her.

Within a minute they had made it through the castle town, to the castle and to the stone archway that led the way to a clearing. A journey that normally would have taken Link hours.

After Link regained his sense of balance and cleared away the vertigo that had overcome him, he examined the clearing. He saw a young girl there. She wore a white headdress and silken garb. The colors were light blue, magenta and white. She was adorned with golden bracelets, gold necklace, and gilded belt. She was peering in through a tall glass pane at the main entry. In a few minutes an important guest was supposed to come and be greeted by her father, the king.

Link started a slow walk across the well-kept field. He took his time by examining the flowers as he walked. He knew he couldn't leave; Impa hadn't yet left. Halfway across he exhaled. He stared at the back of Zelda's head and strode half of the remaining way to her. He stopped before stepping on the stone steps that lead to the slightly elevated platform Zelda stood on.

Zelda heard his movement and turned to look at him. When she recognized who it was, she gasped and placed a hand over her mouth. After a moment she put the hand back at her side and grinned.

"Link...you actually came..." She let the grin fade to a small smile as Link nodded. Zelda nearly ran to him, but her sense of propriety kept it to a hurried walk. Link furrowed his eyebrows and decided to take a step back as she got closer. However, one step was not enough. When she was close enough, Zelda hugged Link.

His eyes widened, eye brows going halfway up his forehead. For a moment Link thought that when he looked at his reflection in the glass pane that his cheeks were painted a shade of red. After a moment Link regained his composure and squirmed out of her grasp. He took a step back and straightened his tunic out. He hadn't disliked the hug, but it had been unwonted, and had caught him off guard. He disliked surprises.

A month and a half passed, Link remained in Hyrule mainly because of Zelda. He just felt bad leaving. She had no other friends to relate to. He never stayed in the castle, he'd always wander around Hyrule for days at a time. However, he'd always come back to hang around with Zelda. She managed to get him to trade in his Hylian shield for a lighter and stronger version called the Hero's Shield. He was able to use the new shield like his old, burned Deku Shield.

But he never spoke. He tried his variant of sign language, but it had taken years to get the Kokiri to understand what he was trying to say. Fortunately for Link, Zelda usually understood what he wanted to say without him having to try very hard, and if not he would scribble in the dirt.

On a fine day Zelda had managed to talk her father into letting Impa take her to Lon Lon Ranch. Link joined with them as well, and it was just the three of them. Near the afternoon they had stopped for lunch. Zelda was sitting with her knees up, arms curled about the limbs and was staring at Link. He was sitting on the ground next to her, hands propping himself up, legs sprawled on the ground. He had a huge grin on his face as his eyes wandered across the fields.

"Link?" Zelda ventured out towards him. He blinked, seemed shocked for a moment, shook his head and looked at her. She closed her eyes and shook her head. She feigned a smile at him, "Sorry, it's nothing." That worried Link, Zelda was usually not afraid to say anything on her mind when talking to him.

When the got to Lon Lon Ranch, Impa stayed in the house with Talon while allowing a young girl, Talon's daughter Malon, with bright orange hair to show Zelda about the Ranch. Link stayed with the princess.

After a while Malon showed them their prize filly, Epona. She was a beautiful bay. Malon walked her over to Link and she immediately broke free of Malon's loose grasp and nuzzled Link. Link pursed his lips as he let a questioning gaze fall on Malon.

"Fairy boy, Epona likes you a lot more than anyone else, you don't even need to use Mom's song to calm her down. Dad says that if she stays as wild as she is, we wouldn't be able to give her away and we couldn't keep her. I don't understand why though...so I'm going to give her to you, Fairy boy."

Link bit his lip, running a hand through her wild silver mane. Then he reached towards his belt and pulled out two rupees, one was silver and the other gold. Malon gawked at them and Zelda stared. "That's a lot for her, Fairy boy, and she's a gift. Besides, won't you run out?"

Link shook his head and stretched the limb holding the money out to her. He lifted his left hand up, shrugged his left shoulder and dismissed the idea with a wave. Not even a year ago, everyone around him could have figured out that the gesture meant, in that context, "I have enough." However, everyone here was confused by it. Malon just shook her head. Link sighed and put the rupees back in his leather bag.

On the way out of the ranch Link stopped to get a few bottles of milk from Talon. He made sure to drop the silver and gold rupee in a cluster of Cuckoos. It would be found later, after he was long gone. For the rest of the day they walked around Hyrule, coming near the border by Lake Hylia an hour before dusk.

Link looked at the cluster of trees longingly. Zelda spoke up after watching him for a while, "You already want to leave this land of Hyrule, don't you Link?" Link stared at her, eyes widened. Then he hung his head. Zelda turned and reached into her shirt under the belt and pulled out a metallic blue ocarina, "Even though it was only a short time, I feel like I've known you forever." She turned around to face him, hiding it.

"I'll never forget the days we spent together in Hyrule. And I believe in my heart that the day will come when I meet you again. Until that day comes," she stared down at the object she held, "Please, take this." She revealed the item she held to be the Ocarina of Time and smiled at him. "I am praying, praying that your journey be a safe one," she said as she held the Ocarina of Time out to him. "If something should happen to you, remember this song." she brought the ocarina back. "This song reminds me of us," she whispered before bringing the instrument to her lips and played a song that Link knew only too well.

Link pulled out his Fairy Ocarina and played the tune back, Zelda smiled at Link and held the ocarina she held out to him. "Take this." Link, faced with little other option, took the ocarina. On a caprice, he suddenly held the Fairy Ocarina out to Zelda. She looked at him inquisitively but took it from him. He put the Ocarina of Time into his tunic and jumped onto Epona's back. He then lightly guided Epona into the forest, patting her head to make her feel better.

Behind him, Zelda sighed and let a single tear fall down her face. "The Goddess of Time is protecting you. If you play that song, she'll help you." she held the Fairy Ocarina dejectedly to her tightly and turned around to meet Impa, a few meters off.

Only a fortnight later Link was riding into a forest again. He had taken ten days to reach a place called Clock Town outside of the forest. Three more days were spent working on helping the people of that town. He had spent twenty-one days there in total, but he had taken Zelda's advice and used the Song of Time to go back in time three days, seven times. He stroked Epona's mane as he rode along. The other day had been spent in preparation of leaving Clock Town.

He liked Clock Town. Maybe he would return one day. It was small and quiet. No one knew of his heroic deeds in that town, so no one praised him like a hero. They only thanked him for the kindness he had done for them.

Attached to the makeshift saddle he rode on, which was really just a piece of cloth that he had clumsily sewn various implements to, was a leather pouch. The pouch seemed empty, but it was one of those magical items he had acquired on his more recent journey; like his pockets, the items disappeared when put into it. Into the other three pouches were his bomb bag, his wallet and some various pieces of parchment and a writing utensil.

After several hours of riding in the dense forest he dismounted Epona and rested against a tree. He had no sense of the time. However, he was weary and wanted to rest. He pulled out the ocarina Zelda had given him and brought it to his lips. He played no particular tune. Epona whinnied and neighed softly, enjoying the music. After a few minutes Link's eyes dropped and he fell asleep. The ocarina rolled to the ground next to him.


	4. Chapter 1 Time

Hello, everyone. It has been two weeks since my last update, and here is another one. Currently, I am stuck playing Twilight Princess until I beat it. I'll try and keep the updates regular, however. Anyways, enjoy the reading. I hope this'll last you for the next two weeks. Happy Holidays and such.

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_**Time**_

_Time is a funny thing. It speeds up and slows down depending on what someone is doing. This isn't really time doing that, its someone paying too much, or too little, attention to the time as it passes. When a person is called to do an action, it is too soon, or too late, never the right time. As someone ages, it is too fast, or too slow. For some time is at a stand still, as they remember the past._

_For one teenage hero, he was called to be a hero too soon, and passed through time to the right age, but perhaps it was still to early for heroic deeds for his mind. As such, he was sent back through time to live through his childhood and he left the land he had been born, and lived in up to that time, forever._

_For one princess, time stood still in her mind, as she waited patiently for the hero to return. Time flowed around her, but she remembered the other timeline, and the heroic deeds of said timeline that the hero had closed off._

* * *

It was a dark night. The moon wasn't shining and the numerous stars were dimmer than usual. The air stood still, waiting, as if the planet was a gigantic child holding its breath, to see how long it could before it had to let go. Inside a castle in a country named Hyrule, its young princess slept. Her long, wavy, blonde hair spread elegantly about the pillow her head rested on. White sheets rested unperturbed over her form. Despite this, her eyebrows her furrowed, and if her eyes were open one would be able to see the fear and shock overwhelming her nightmares.

The princess looked at a young man about her age, seventeen. His light blue eyes and face were serious. Locks of blonde hair were unkempt by the side of his face. He wore a dark green tunic with a brown leather belt neatly buckled about his waist. There was a sword strap of the same material that went from his right shoulder to the left side of his waist. On his head was a dark green cone shape hat; the point of the cone fell to the middle of his back. He wore a dark blue earring on his left ear. Although he didn't show it, anger was growing within him. The princess knew it well.

The boy had his gaze fixed on someone that mimicked him in appearance. This one had black hair and red eyes. He wore a black tunic and had a black earring. The skin tone was pale.

The more ominous appearing one had attacked the one in green from behind. There was a long bloody cut trailing from the back of his spine to a few inches under his left underarm.

Suddenly the man wearing black charged at the other, sword in his right hand. The other begin to draw his own sword, but by the time that was achieved, the other's blade had found his neck. The cut wasn't as deep as five pieces of paper stacked together, but it was enough to be lethal.

The princess screamed one name. "LINK!"

* * *

The princess shot up in her bed, the word dying on her lips. She breathed deeply, trying to calm her racing heart and slipped out from under the covers. A light turquoise nightdress fell about her feet, the heavy silk material rustling as she strode. She walked gracefully out to a small balcony attached to her room. She rested her hands on the balcony rail and leaned forward fretfully to look down at the gardens. Spotting no one, save for two guards, she leaned back and stood there, and closed her eyes. She tried to rid the image from her recent dream from her mind.

Why now and why him? He had left Hyrule seven years ago when they were both ten, or at least that's how old he appeared, she knew about the ancient magic of the forest he grew up in and he never said his age. Actually, he had never said one word during the whole time she knew him. The faithful blue fairy that accompanied him had always spoken for the boy.

Zelda exhaled noisily. Now, or seven years ago, what was it? He had traveled through time to defeat an evil king, he had done that seven years ago. Every time he went forward in time he had aged seven years.

A wave of guilt passed through her mind as she thought about him. She had caused that mission. She had forced him to take that duty, give up his peaceful life. However, a week after meeting him, he had left, without a word as usual. She had felt as if she had known him for a lifetime.

It had been seven years since she had seen him last, seeing him off as he left Hyrule, the first time she had ever seen him without Navi the fairy, for keeps. She had barely given him a thought since. So why now and why him? She was getting nowhere very quickly in her thoughts. Suddenly she felt lightheaded before collapsing on the balcony; her light form huddled there.

In the shadows above her a figure went unnoticed, the moonlight lit up the smirk on the person's face.

* * *

In another land, several days journey from Hyrule, the giant let go of the breath. The young man in green from the princess's dream glanced in the direction the wind was blowing before shifting to protect his small campfire from the wind. He held onto his hat with a hand covered in a brown gauntlet as the hat threatened to blow off of his head. Silently he continued to whisper every syllable he knew of. A blue fairy flitted lazily around his head.

"You know, Link, it would be easier just to speak like a normal person instead of staying up all night once a year like this. Besides, why do you care so much about being able to speak if you never talk?"

Link, looked up at his fairy. He raised one of his eyebrows slightly before staring back at the campfire. He was done with the task he had been doing when the fairy had started to speak.

"That's a lame excuse. I mean, you have a card with your name on it, you speak through your actions, or tell me to say it if you can't do that much. Oh, whimpering slightly when you get hit hard does not count as talking, it just counts as whimpering slightly when you get hit hard."

Link ignored the fairy and stared into the fire thinking. "You talk enough for two people, Navi. So why don't I just be silent?"

The female fairy stopped flapping her four feather-like wings for a second as she caught Link's thought. She fell slightly in the air before flying around again. "No fair. And what's eating you?"

"Nothing's_ eating_ me," he put out the fire. Resting near a tree he fell asleep, hoping that for the seventh time in a row, his thoughts wouldn't stray to someone he had known seven years ago. Navi just alighted on his shoulder twitched her wings once and rested there.

* * *

_However still, forever is meaningless as time flows for each person and everything. Time warps and twists everything, there can never be a forever of one thing staying the same. People hate time, and fall victim to its whims. They are heedlessly called into action, even at the worst time and sometime the best. Time itself means nothing, as some are able to pass across time, as if it was a river._

* * *

Several hours before sunrise that morning Link woke suddenly from his sleep. His eyes snapped open, his eyebrows furrowed in confusion. He propped himself up with one arm and gazed skywards. He felt a zephyr blow his bangs against his skin. He groaned and closed his eyes. He had dreamt about Zelda again.

The first time he had dreamt after being released from the seal created by the Master Sword, it had been about Zelda, and so had each dream he had every night on that timeline. Of course, there would have been some nights where he didn't sleep at all.

He suspired as he thought. Why was it that he could pass back and forth across time so easily? Did the Goddess of Time respect him that much, or was it only because he was the Hero of Time? He had needed to leave that land, and hurt several people's feelings. Inexplicably, a longing to be back in the large fields of Hyrule came to him. Link pushed the thought to the innermost recesses of his mind. He couldn't. It wasn't possible, he had left there seven years ago, meaning it to be forever, and he would see that it was so.

Silently cursing time in his head, thinking it wretched and despicable, his thoughts were interrupted.

"Hey! Link, is that what's been bothering you lately?" there was a pause before Navi started up again. "I mean Zelda." another pause. "Geesh, you sure are a bit slow on the uptake. Fairies have special links with the people, usually Kokiri, that they accompany. Of course I knew what you were thinking, and dreaming." there was a more of a shocked silence this time, before Navi started to laugh. When she stopped she spoke up again, "The only way to block your thoughts from me is to not think them at all."

Link rolled his eyes at the fairy, he had known for a long time that she could read his thoughts, but he had always been under the assumption that it was when he wanted her to. Navi had left his side shortly before he had left Hyrule to go to Termina, where he was now, but he had found her within a year, and she had gone back to talking for him. She had become his partner again only because the link between her and him was still there. Navi had left at first because she had thought that it was gone, but since it hadn't disappeared she was required to travel with him once more.

For the six months the fairy hadn't been with him, he used the card Navi had spoken of to answer people's questions for his name and used a unique sign language for almost everything else, but it was still nice to have his thoughts said aloud.

He lay back down after a while and tried to go back to sleep, still cursing time in his mind.


	5. Chapter 1 Time 2

Hours after sunrise in Hyrule the princess's head rolled around as someone shook her shoulders. This someone was a female with a muscular build. She had silver hair kept in a short ponytail and red eyes with silver markings under them. Her outfit was a combination of indigo cloth and metal plating with an eye painted inter red on her chest. The eye had three triangular eyelashes and a large tear under it. 

"Zelda, wake up! Zelda!"

Zelda opened her aquamarine eyes and promptly shielded them with her hand to protect them from the morning sun.

"Impa?" she inquired slowly. Her mouth was parched and her mind was groggy. "What time is it?"

"It's almost noon, you slept late. Your parents were beginning to worry about you." Impa rose and looked down at Zelda, "Why are you sleeping on the balcony?"

Zelda stood up, feeling a minute form of vertigo she braced herself against the stone railing of the balcony. She blinked a few times before answering. "I woke up and walked out here to think, then I just collapsed...I guess." She started to yawn and covered her mouth with her free hand.

"Are you feeling well enough for your trip today?" Impa queried her. Her expression held a strong concern for the well being of the princess.

"Trip?" suddenly she slapped her forehead lightly. "Oh yes, we are going to Termina today for a month aren't we?"

"Yes. Answer my question, Zelda."

"I'm fine. I'll be out in a few minutes." Impa turned around and left the elegant room.

Within the hour she had managed to put on an elegant forest green dress that she had picked out the night before. In addition, she wore a pair of dusty green satin elbow length gloves. Set atop her combed hair was thin golden tiara. She had gold earrings that were three triangles arranged to form one larger triangle with a triangular hole in the center.

She hurried gracefully down the stairs to the large entrance hall where her parents and Impa were waiting.

Soon afterwards, the four of them were in a carriage on their way to Termina. Zelda was sitting on the opposite side of the coach from her parents. She stared out of the window, deep in thought.

* * *

Eight days later Link was sprinting around a small town. He was chasing a small black dog that always managed to evade his grasp whenever he got near. After several minutes he caught the dog scooped it up and carried the struggling mutt back to its young owner. The red haired kid grinned up at a panting Link as he took his small black pooch back.

"Thanks, mister, for bringing Shadow back!"

"Welcome," chimed the fairy as Link nodded at the kid and walked off. "So, Link, still being the hero, even after all this time?" Navi asked her companion as she flittered lazily in the air just behind him, occasionally flying in front of him. He lifted his somber azure eyes up at the creature, striding quickly.

"There's nothing wrong with helping people, Navi." Link thought back to her.

"No, guess not." Link examined at the high arch tunnel he was walking in. He looked back from the side he came from, stopping in the middle. He saw the kid leave through the other egress that led to the western part of town. He could spot the cave that led to the Great Fairy. Not many people knew that, thinking it was dangerous and ignored it after a while, for only Deku Scrubs or the very limber and strong could make it to the mouth of the cave.

While Link had been out for six months seven years ago, someone had put a gate in front of the cave. It took some clambering to climb up over the fence.

He threw his gaze forward and continued his previous destination. He was greeted by a great stone tower poking out of the wooden platform he trod upon that held the giant clock that the small town was named for. The clock face was on the other side, and he fully intended to check the time. With that in mind the teenage Hylian walked down the slope that would lead to the main part of the southern section of Clock town.

Then he noticed the crowd. He had thought nothing strange of the mutters his pointed ears had caught, it wasn't strange for a greater portion of the people to be milling about and talking at this time of day. However, this was unusual. Absolutely everyone, aside from a few guards and children, was there. They were squeezed in the small area, and had left a large section at the front open. All of them were looking at the entrance. Expectancy in the air being so thick he could almost touch it. He remained still, raised above the crowd in the back by a good foot and could see what they might be looking for above their heads

A minute later Zelda walked through the door. She was in between her two parents as they walked into the only town in the small independent country Termina. They were on their way to Greater Termina, however that was several days away and they wanted to rest in the small town. Zelda shifted on her feet uncomfortably under the stares. She wanted to be in the back with Impa and the other guards with accompanying the royal family. That would never have done for a princess, so she knew that she couldn't.

She didn't like it. She had heard people talking outside, the young woman had sensitive ears, and the loud buzz was hard to miss. But now everything was silent, one could have heard a pin drop.

Up where he was, Link could see Princess Zelda clearly. When the crowd bowed, he squatted so low no one could have seen him. He had to get away, run if possible. Silently, he wondered if perhaps he should pay more attention to the bulletins in the town square; he might have been made aware that way, like everyone else was. Perhaps they weren't just notices about sales and auctions and things that didn't really matter to him. Still, he wasn't in a position to wonder about that, it didn't solve his problem.

"Hey! Link!" The fairy whispered nervously into his ear, faintly, so quiet in fact that the Hero of Time had to strain to hear it. "Look! On the roof!" Navi flapped her wings quickly and flew in circles. Link raised his head to notice what was making his trusted friend so jittery.

An archer clad in dark robes that were oddly familiar to Link was poised on the roof. It had a wooden bow, the string was taught, a hand locked against the jaw. Three arrows were ready to let fly. The aim was poised directly at the royal family, ready to snipe and kill. Link had pulled off a feat like that once or twice in the heat of battle, arrows could be shot accurately like that, with great difficulty, but it was possible.

Link quickly pulled a small knife out of his pocket. He didn't have enough time to ready his bow on his back, so he opted for the balanced throwing dagger. Everyone else was standing now, and no one noticed the sniper. He stood partially up, knees bent, waiting for the archer to make the first move. His vision focused only on the archer. His hand was at the ready, waiting for the order to come from his brain to throw the weapon.

The bowstring twanged, bow bent, and arrows flew. Link snapped into action. The steely dagger flew and caught the shaft of an arrow, blade digging through and caught a second arrow. His aim, or timing, was off a little, and the third arrow flew straight, clearing the dagger by a millimeter. The head of the remaining arrow buried itself into the princess. The dagger end buried into a crevice between the stone blocks that made the walls of the town.

However, the archer's aim was off more, and caught her side, but it would prove to be fatal if not treated within the hour. Red blood stained the green gown. Zelda collapsed, and the crowd gasped.

Link had waited a moment to see the cost of his mistake and decided not to linger about. Relatively sure that no one would spot him he backed up quickly and whirled around the corner of the clock hiding behind it. With his back pressed against the tower he searched for the archer, his battle instincts flared. But the assassin had disappeared, which caused Link to wonder about the archer's existence in the first place. His muscles tingled from the sudden spike of adrenaline.

He dug into his pocket again and pulled out a small magnifying glass with a thick blue and red lens with a diamond shape in relief the center on either side. He raised the glass to an eye and looked around. There was nothing to see. Nothing abnormal from what it was. Sighing in his head he put the glass back into his pocket. He ran through the tunnel back to the northern section.

In South Clock Town the guards scattered through the crowd, looking for the perpetrator. Impa knelt by her ward and looked in dismay at the wound. She pressed a metal clad hand against a pale forehead. Zelda was conscious, but in too much pain to do much of anything.

One of the guards of the town had spotted the archer, but too late. He had seen two of the arrows get taken down and pinned to a wall. The first possible moment in the ensuing chaos he had taken the opportunity to go look at the arrows. He raised his metal visor back to the top of his helmet where it had began to fall down onto his face. He saw the dagger that had stopped the arrows and knew that only one person could have possibly done this.

He ran to North Clock town with that strange cave nobody really went into anymore. The guard was new to Clock Town and didn't know what was kept in the cave. He came upon the small park and glanced up at a red balloon bobbling up and down in the air. Attached to that balloon was a little man wearing bright green and red. Due to the visitors the usual guards weren't by the exit to Termina field.

"Tingle! Have you seen Link lately?"

Tingle looked up from his parchment paper and down at the man in the armor. "Yes, Tingle saw the fairy boy!" he squealed excitedly, normally no one acknowledged his existence. "Tingle wants a fairy just like his and then he will live in the Sacred Forest. Tingle was working on a new map for him, and wanted to tell him, but he left into the great fields in a hurry."

The armored man nodded and hurried out, tightening his grip on his spear. He wanted to know what had happened. When he left the walls of the town he spotted an excited mare. She was beautiful with a sorrel coat and a wild mane and tail of silver. She was born of the wind, and was fast under her master's coaxing hand. She was as wild as the wind and no one could ride her but one.

The mare was stamping impatiently at where her rider was, she wanted to _run_. For a reason the horse couldn't fathom he was crouched on the ground. He had run out of the town and right past her, stopping suddenly and bent there. She didn't know what made that piece of earth so special, it was the same green as the rest of the field, she knew nothing was there, having been there but a moment or two previous.

She watched him pull a blue orb out of his pocket and place it on the ground, lighting the strange rope growing out of it on fire with some flint. This was enough to make her back off a few feet, she recognized that device of which he used.

Link backed away from the bomb and turned to face it moments before it blew up. A hole appeared in the ground, most of the surrounding grass was charred, but a square just small enough for Link to slip through opened to a chasm below.

The guard walked out of town just in time to see Link slip through. He walked over to the edge and peered downwards, being careful not to fall in. He wondered just exactly what was going on. Then he decided to back away from the hole and see what would happen. A minute later Link was thrown out of the hole in the ground and landed a foot away on his feet. The hole sealed itself once Link was out.


	6. Chapter 1 Time 3

"Link! What're you doing?" Link looked at the guard, and silently acknowledged his presence with a questioning glance. The guard was confused, but had learned a few years ago not to question his ways, "I noticed the dagger you threw. What happened back there?" for the most part. 

Link shook his head. "He doesn't know, there was just someone that was going to shoot them." Link held out a bottle that was corked and had an uncannily wide neck so that a fairy with a pink glow could be caught inside, which it was. Navi continued speaking for the hero. "He wants you to bring this to the one that was hit by the arrow he missed. He's out of potion, but this should be able to heal the wound."

The guard stared at the fairy in the bottle figuring that must have been what Link had gone down for. He took the bottle and stared at the fairy before nodding, he had heard about the little creatures, they had healing powers. "Oh, I was trying to find you earlier, but I couldn't, the mayor wants to see you in his office as soon as possible."

The guard turned around and sprinted back. Link sighed and gazed up at the sky before walking deliberately slowly to the building in East Clock town that the mayor worked in. Navi was trying to figure out what was on Link's mind, but he was doing a very good job of not thinking and just walking.

When he arrived at the red faced building, the elven male opened the door, bypassed the secretary's desk, which was empty, and stopped at the heavy wood door on the left. He knocked on the door and opened it before poking his head inside. Then he brought the rest of himself in.

The aged man sitting behind the desk in the room glanced up at Link. He put his papers down, "Ah, Link. I'm glad you came."

He sighed and sized Link up. "I'm sure you know of the royal family of Hyrule staying here for several days before they leave for the country we separated from." here he paused, waited for Link to nod and then continued. "I was wondering if you would do me the favor of showing them around while they're here. I'd do it myself, but I'm far too old. So will you? Good." he didn't even wait for a reply, taking it for granted that Link would. Link was far from wanting to, but didn't have much of a choice. "Stay here until they arrive."

Grumbling in his head he allowed there to be only one thought, "Faeore hates me."

The guard rushed back to the commotion in South Clock Town. It had been three, maybe four, minutes since the initial shooting; the crowd was being forced back by the guards. No one dared to move the princess. He pushed his way through the crowd and stopped, panting. Impa looked up at him, then at the bottle he carried and its contents. She figured out what it was before the guard started to speak.

"I was given this to give to the princess. It's a-"

"Fairy," Impa said, cutting him off, "I didn't know they lived here. Give it to me." She held out a hand expectantly for the bottle, the guard complied. Impa examined the fairy, there wasn't much dust gathered at the bottom, it had only been caught for a little while. The cork was placed so that the fairy could last for a long time. She pulled the arrow out expertly and tilted the bottle towards Zelda.

The fairy's wings flapped frantically seeing the wound. The moment Impa lifted the cork it flew over. It immediately circled over Zelda's bloody injury. The glowing pink dust it emitted fell down and healed the fallen Hylian completely, excess dust removing the blood stain.

The fairy then flew off beyond the town walls to return home. The crowd hushed and the guards turned to face the royal family. The king and queen of Hyrule watched their daughter nervously.

Zelda opened her eyes and sat up, rubbing her side. She had passed out from pain after a minute, the arrow had stuck itself between her ribs. "That feels better. What happened exactly?" She stared at the crowd in confusion as Impa helped her stand. She looked at her parents and then her wandering gaze caught the red stained arrow.

"Someone shot you, Zelda. This guard gave us a fairy to help you."

Zelda tuned her gaze to the guard, and smiled. "Thank you."

The guard shifted nervously, "I didn't do anything, ma'am. I was told to give you that fairy. The one who got it for you is in the mayor's office."

"Could you take us there?"

He nodded, and turned towards the crowd, walking towards it, "All right, make way! Let them through!"

When the group of five made it to the mayor's office they only saw the middle-aged man at first. Link had chosen to lean against a wall. He was hidden by one of the plants that the mayor had gotten in the past year. His blue gaze froze on Zelda for a matter of five seconds. He wanted just to dart out of the room, and get away, but he remained standing where he was. The guard quickly excused himself from the room. When he turn he spotted Link. He exchanged an encouraging look with Link before exiting. Link remained unnoticed otherwise.

"King and Queen Harkinian, it's a pleasure to see you. This must be Zelda," he smiled at them. "I apologize, Clock Town won't be close to the court life you'll be used to."

"It's all right, I'm sure all of us can use the break, especially Zelda." the king smiled down at his daughter. She smiled with embarrassment at the remark.

"I've arranged for someone to be a guide, he'll show you around during your four day stay here," the mayor paused and added on a hasty amendment. "if you'd like."

"Oh, so where is he?"

The mayor nodded his head toward the young man's position. "Link, will you please let them see more then your boot?"

Link shrugged, uncrossed his arms, and ambled over to the mayor's desk. He turned to face the other four. His expression was unreadable, although he seemed relaxed, and rested a hand casually on the only chair in the room near the mayor's desk. Inside he was hoping feverishly that Zelda wouldn't recognize him. Zelda examined him, trying not to manifest her shock too clearly.

"This is Link. He's worked up a good reputation here for a while."

"Ah, okay, Link." the king stared at him, "How are you?" Link froze, and didn't respond aside from the tensing of his muscles. He waited for Navi to speak up for him like she normally did, but she didn't. At Link's response, or lack thereof, the king grew impatient. "I asked you a question, boy."

"Don't be too hard on him. I think he's mute, no one's ever heard him speak."

"Oh." The king inspected Link. While doing so his look became stern and he frowned. "So then how can we talk with him?"

At that particular moment Navi decided to make her grand appearance. Link hated the flare for dramatic entrances that the small fairy had recently acquired. "Well, he doesn't talk. That doesn't mean he can't hear what you say. I'll let you know what Link wants to tell you." She perched herself on Link's shoulder. "My name's Navi."

"Link," the teen stared down at the mayor as he was addressed. "They're staying in Stock Pot."

"Where else would they stay? Stock Pot is the only Inn in Clock Town." was his inward response to the statement, but he just gave a nod. Navi remained silent, knowing he didn't want her to say that aloud. He glanced up at the royal family and Impa. He sauntered around them to the door. Navi called out for him, "Follow us."

Link led them out of the office and over to half of East Clock Town, the largest section of Clock Town. The people they passed made a larger clearance for the family to pass through. Everyone but the children bowed their heads to the king, queen and princess.

Link came to a building that had an awning in front of it with some chairs for outdoor seating under the cloth. The sign over the door read Stock Pot Inn.


	7. Chapter 2 Life

Well, here's another update. Sorry for the wait, but holiday season caught me up and stuff. I hope you all enjoy. Many pages.

_**Life**_

_Life's a constantly fleeting thing, more fickle and irritating then time itself is. People are constantly trying to figure out who they are in life, what their purpose is and everything like that. No one truly ever finds the answers to these questions. They live life as best they can, living, seeing, being what they try to be, but never being it._

_Life is all too short and all too long all at once. Life goes by too fast when it should go slow and all too slowly when it should move quickly. It works with time to annoy everyone and everything. It is merciless and all the more crueler then time, never allowing anyone peace of mind._

_In life, hard works avails to nothing. However, no work avails to less then nothing. People must work, and never get a reward. They try to hard and not hard enough all at the same time. In life, nothing's ever good enough, but at the same time, its too good. Some feel that the answer to "what is life?" is being individual and unique. Being one of a kind would be good enough for them._

* * *

Link opened the door and walked in, the others following him. Inside the inn was comfortable looking. There were potted plants in all the corners, knick-knacks rested on the shelves over the desk. On the desk was a worn old parchment tome. In it was inked carefully the names off all the guests of the inn for the last hundred years. It rested open, the ebony ink on the pages absorbing the sunlight cast onto it from the windows. Along the wall facing the desk were several benches for clients to sit on.

The noise of their footsteps were stifled, no noise came from any point inside or outside the building. Link listened intently for several minutes. He heard nothing but the breathing from the people nearby. He couldn't catch the everyday sounds he was used to inside the inn. It was as if no one was inside. His expression became grim and serious, the silence troubled him and put him on edge.

Link strode to the corridor behind the stairs. The dull thud of his footsteps didn't echo on the wooden floor. He walked to the end of the corridor. He glanced inside the room to his right. He froze. Inside the room was not how it was supposed to be. It was dark and shadowy, almost like the middle of the night. Inside was a cloaked figure; Link recognized it as the man from earlier who had tried to kill the royal family.

Link reached up over his right shoulder to grab the silver hilt of his sword, but was stopped short by a deep baritone. "Don't try. You wouldn't stand a chance. I'm just here to tell you something. Don't fight your fate. You couldn't, even if you wanted to."

Link froze at the sound of the voice, the evil drawl that came from the cloaked man. He couldn't even see the smallest hint at the face. He didn't think that something should be that shadowed naturally. Still, there was something tantalizingly familiar about him; perhaps he had met this man on one of his many quests. Then he realized with a start that Navi wasn't anywhere near him. He couldn't catch the faint chiming sound of her constant movement about his person. The cloaked figure laughed evilly at the teenaged swordsman.

The room spiraled out of his thought and he felt an overwhelming sense of confusion and bewilderment. He closed his eyes to regain his senses. When he opened them again, he was standing in the lobby of Stock Pot Inn. The royal family was behind him. He heard the hustle of people outside the inn and a silent man in his twenties was standing behind the desk looking at him. Link felt like a Goron band was drumming a tattoo in his skull. He held back all signs of pain for the time being.

"Link! What happened?" Navi half shouted into the air.

Link could feel the stares of all the people in the room on his back and front. This elicited a small twitch at the corner of his mouth and the slightest flush to crawl up his face. He continued to walk into the room, shaking his head to show that nothing was wrong. It was a lie. He and Navi both knew this, but the others accepted his response. The well-dressed man shook his head, he knew that Link was one to keep his problems to himself. He addressed the others first. After they were gone he would force an answer out of Link as to why he had suddenly looked dazed the moment he walked into the inn.

"Good afternoon. My name's Kafei, you must be the Harkinian royal family scheduled to stay here for the remainder of the week," the king nodded.

"Yes, we thank you for allowing our stay."

"Not a problem. You came during the least busy month of the year for us." The young man reached under the counter and pulled up some keys. He turned his head back towards the doorframe behind him. "Anju! Could you come over here?"

There was a small crashing sound from the back area, and Kafei flinched from the sound. A young woman only a year younger then Kafei came from around the staircase. Her blue skirt swished around her calves as she jogged into the room. Her red hair was somewhat disheveled.

"Yes, Kafei?"

Kafei smiled at her and held out the keys to her. "Could you show our guests to their rooms, please?"

"Oh." Then she spotted the people in the inn. Her blue eyes widened. "Yes, of course." She accepted the keys and inspected their tags and waved them to follow her up the stairs. Link stood off to the side, allowing them to pass, when the King gave him a questioning look Link shrugged and Navi spoke up.

"You're staying here for four days after today. Link thinks that it would be best if he let you settle in for the rest of the day, and he'll meet you here tomorrow morning to show you around. Besides, he has stuff he needs to do today."

The king nodded and walked towards the staircase. Anju led them up to their rooms. Before Zelda passed by Navi, the small fairy whispered something into the princess's ear, "Met us outside the gate later; its right across from the entrance to the Inn to your left."

On the upper floor before they went into their rooms to settle in for the day, Anju made an announcement. Her voice wavered as she spoke. "W-we serve dinner at seven for our guests," she bit her lip apprehensively before hastily adding something. "T-that is if you'd like it."

The queen smiled at the much younger girl. "Thank you, we'd appreciate it."

Anju nodded and ran down the steps, nearly tripping in the process.

Downstairs Kafei had stopped Link from exiting the building the moment the last skirt had disappeared up the stairs.

"What happened when you came in here, Link? You just froze for nearly a minute."

Navi took a moment to get a good response from Link. "He just zoned out is all."

Kafei, having years of practice conversing with the boy shook his head, looking at Link, and paying no heed to Navi. "That's unlike you, Link."

Link just shrugged his shoulders, nodded his head at the son of the mayor. He strode out of the building before Kafei could get in another word edgewise. "Hey! Link-" The door slammed shut, cutting off the statement.

In Zelda's room Impa was moving about, trying to unpack the stuff the princess needed for her four day stay in Clock Town. Zelda sat down at the edge of the bed in the room. "It's really different here Impa. Its not like anyplace I've been before, not even Kakariko village." Impa shot Zelda a disgruntled look almost immediately. Her red eyes were narrowed a little. "Oh, right, sorry, Impa." Zelda stood up. "Let me help with that, it's boring just doing nothing."

Impa shook her head. "Sorry, Zelda. I can't let you." Zelda sighed explosively and sat back down on the bed, falling backwards. "There are a few hours until dinner, perhaps you would like to go outside and sit under the awning?"

"Oh yes. Do you mind?" Zelda jumped up off of the bed and hurried out of the room. Impa smiled and shook her head at the girl's energy.

Zelda quietly slipped down the stairs and out of the Inn. She looked to her right and to her left several times. She spotted an open doorway to her right, but could see South Clock Town. To the left she saw a guard and the outer fields. There was no one around for the moment.

She slipped back into the lobby of the inn and double-checked that there was no one there. Being sure that she was quite alone Zelda invoked a magical power that she had learned from her Sheikah bodyguard. Her elegant dress changed to rough blue tight shirt and pants with a loose white shirt with the Sheikah symbol on the front. Her blonde hair became shorter, rougher and gained a red tint. The bangs were swept to the right side of her face. They covered one of her now red eyes and some of the white bandages that masked the lower part of her face.

She reopened the door of the inn and sprinted out of it and to the door on her left. Once past the guard she sat down on the track structure that wound around the walls of Clock Town. She looked up and spotted Link far in front of her and slightly to her right. He hadn't noticed her coming out of the town. His attention was focused solely on his sorrel mare. The glowing blue orb that circled his head saw Zelda however. She seemed to call attention to her because Link stopped patting Epona's mane. He turned around to look at Zelda's altered form, and smiled gratefully. He led the mare along with him over to the noble.

Link rested an arm on the mare's back, leaning against her casually. Zelda stood up and turned back to normal. "Hey, Link."

Link nodded, Navi spoke up for him. "Hey. So...to get to the point, Link wants to know why you're here."

Zelda chuckled. Given the nasty look Link had tossed at his fairy ally she figured that he hadn't wanted Navi to ask that. "My parents and I are on our way to Greater Termina, they decided to stay here for a few days is all."

After Link's nod for accepting the answer, Navi spoke up. "And half of the royal guard." Link stood in shock for a few moments after she had said it. Then he gave her a twisted, and even nastier look then before. She had the nerve to say that? He hadn't even wanted her to come close to saying that.

Zelda shot Navi a quizzical look. Link groaned mentally, drumming his fingers in a feign of strained patience on his horse's side. Although he was still angry with Navi, it was a personal annoyance of his that people would look at Navi and not him when she spoke for him. By far it outdid his anger towards the fairy, for the moment. "What? I'm just speaking his thoughts. That was him, Zelda." Personally, Navi was enjoying making Link squirm. Under her blue glow she was grinning in triumph as she heard Link cursing her mentally.

Zelda cast her questioning expression to Link. In response he shrugged, deciding to forgive the fairy, but if Navi did something like that again it was time for the bottle. Navi froze in midair. She nearly fell to the ground after catching the thought wave from Link. Although his face was as stoic as ever he was laughing at Navi in his head.

Zelda paused and stared at Link for a long moment. After a minute Link noticed her gaze. He fidgeted minutely under the gaze, but for the most part he remained stoic. It was hard for Zelda to tell if the little red on his face from the sunset or embarrassment. After a while she decided that it had to be the sunset.

"You know, Link. I've been wondering something."

"What?" Navi had flown back up from Link's thought earlier.

"Well," she leaned back against the wall, "You look different. It's the outfit. It's a lot darker than it was. I mean," she suddenly lost her stereotypical cool under his quirked eyebrow and confused expression. "Not that you look bad or anything. You look good...it's just that..." She froze at the words that had just come out of her mouth. She had an expression equivalent of a fish's.

What surprised her more was the unexpected, almost inaudible, chuckle that came from Link. She was completely flabbergasted; she hadn't even seen him smirk before. She thought that Link didn't have a sense of humor. He never made any noise; he was even practically silent when he walked!

She blinked several times and her jaw dropped slightly as the chuckle nearly became a laugh. After a minute Link pulled himself back together and leaned against Epona indifferently once again, eyes emotionless and mouth a straight line. Zelda too gained back her normal calm, and began to question if he had even chuckled in the first place.

"Maybe you should go back in before someone notices. Besides, Link has stuff to do, places to go, and people to not see." Zelda smiled at the last part. "Oh, and Link says it's great to see you again."

Zelda nodded to Link. "It's good to see you too, Link." she turned back into Sheik and rushed back into town and to the inn. Fortunately, her absence hadn't been noticed. She got in the door just in time to get dragged into a family discussion.

Link climbed onto Epona's back and rode off on the fields to do what Navi had been saying he needed to do all day. He sent idle threats to the fairy for her behavior earlier as he rode. He hadn't found it nearly as funny as the fairy had.


	8. Chapter 2 Life 2

Link silently swore as he waited inside the inn for the royal family to appear. It was seven in the morning already. He had been up hours ago before the sun had risen. They were wasting precious time. Impatience leaked past his stoic expression, manifested by his left hand constantly twitching. That was an age-old sign of impatience for the young man. Kafei grinned at Link's impatience. He had known Link for a long time, ever since he had come to Clock Town. He knew as well as Navi that Link was losing his patience quickly. Link could pretend indifference as much as he liked, but Kafei knew he was just as emotional as the next person. 

"It's all right, Link. I heard them moving around an hour ago. They're eating breakfast now."

Link nodded. "Thanks!" Navi said before resting on Link's head. After a few more minutes of waiting Link was rewarded by the sound of people coming down the steps. Soon enough he was greeted with the drowsy faces of Zelda, the King, Queen and Impa. A thought rolled across Link's head, "Finally..."

Navi whispered into Link's ear for only him to hear, "Some people don't get up at such insane hours, the moon was still up when you were starting to run around."

Link brushed the comment aside, placing it on the fact that he was used to not getting a lot of sleep. He stood up and walked over to the Royal Family and gave them a nod. He really wasn't comfortable with a bow, so that was the most he could do. He did move his shoulders down a little when he nodded, but only a little.

Navi said, "Link's sorry for waking you up so early. But if you want to see anything outside of Clock Town it'll be necessary. If not, you can take a nap or something."

"We're already up for the day. So please, show us the scenery."

Link gave a shorter nod and walked nearly silently out the door. The other four followed him out of the door and outside the same exit Zelda had used the other day to speak with Link out of the town. Waiting outside of the gate were five horses. One of the horses was Epona. She stamped the ground impatiently when she saw Link. Link strode over to her and touched the top of her head gently. She nickered and remained still. The other four horses were of other coats. There was a palomino mare that had a coat the color of the sun. There was a large roan stallion with a black mane and tail. There was a smaller pure black stallion and a chestnut mare with a white star on her forehead.

"Where'd you get the horses from?"

"They're on loan from a local ranch. Actually, that's where Link was going to bring you today. And somewhere else if he could manage it time wise."

Link simply jumped onto Epona's back. He liked to ride the mare without a saddle. She preferred it too, generally becoming wild and uncomfortable when a saddle was put on her back, once she had accidentally crushed Link's foot when he first tried out a saddle on the mare. All Link put on the mare's back now was a piece of cloth with several pouches sewn onto it that was tied around her middle and went on her right side. Link hadn't put that on her that morning, nor had he put a bridle on her head.

The other four Hylians mounted the horses that Link had gotten for them. When Link pushed on the back of Epona's neck she started forward at a gallop. Link had to pull on her mane and whistle low to get her to stop from the sudden start. The sorrel mare instantly stopped and waited impatiently after the second's flight. She wanted to run and couldn't understand why Link wasn't allowing her to.

Navi called out behind Link. "Sorry, she likes going fast." After a moment Epona got the idea that Link wanted her to lead the other horses to where she was going. When she got that thought she decided that Link wasn't being unreasonable after all.

After two hours of riding the sun was starting to become visible over the cliffs of Ikana. That was the time they arrived at the trail that led to the ranch. On either side it was surrounded by stone cliff face. To the left the cliff face gave way to a shorter trail that led to the horse racetrack owned by the Gorman brothers who had caused trouble for the ranch owners before.

It didn't seem like they had stopped either. Link drummed his fingers in irritation on his white clad leg. How they had managed to move the large boulder in front of the path over night was beyond him. However, It was there and it was blocking his path, so it had to be removed.

In a few moments he had come up with a solution. He circled Epona away from the boulder and behind the stonewall that stood between the branching trail towards the track and the boulder blocking the way of the main trail. With Navi there she was able to suggest aloud that the royal family move there as well.

Link made sure that they were unable to see the boulder from their position dismounted Epona. He walked towards the blockade and pulled out a wide leather pouch from the front of his tunic. He reached into the bag and pulled out a mud colored mask. He replaced the bag. The mask had the face of a Goron on it. The facial covering was oval in outline and barely fit on his face. Once he removed his gauntleted hand from the mask it stayed in place due to the magical power of the item.

He almost yelled from the pain, but merely clenched both hands and grinded his teeth. His body was engulfed in a blue light starting from the mask as his form shifted into that of a Goron. When the shift was done he gasped in pain and panted from the process.

On his back was a very large piece of canvas that was knotted in the front. The part in front went in the opposite direction of his baldric in his natural form. Cradled by the canvas on his rock covered back was a keg filled with black powder. Link pulled the barrel off his back and placed it gently on the ground.

He lifted up one of his arms and with one hand that fit across his entire face he managed to pull off the mask. The process reversed instantaneously and he nearly fell onto his knees in relief, eyes burning from the pain. He pulled out the pouch that he had taken the mask out of and replaced its contents. He put the pouch back where it had been. He carefully positioned the keg in front of the boulder.

He was planning on moving back with the others and sniping the keg with a fire arrow instead of using the flint he carried on him to light the cord at the top of the barrel. He backed away from the keg a few steps and made to turn away from the bomb.

Above on the cliffs to the right an arrow was shot and hit the keg. The arrowhead was ignited and blew up the oversized bomb. Link was only two feet away at the time. He was thrown back with the force of the explosion. The boulder was destroyed in the process and turned into shrapnel and pebbles. Navi remained uninjured as she was out of the range of the explosion having flown ahead of Link. Link landed on his back motionlessly in pain over five feet away. His eyes were open and glazed. His mouth was opened a little in shock.

"Link? Link!" the fairy called out to him. She landed on the ground near his shoulder and used a tiny hand to try and shake his shoulder. After a fruitless attempt at making him move she flew back into the air and circled his head fretfully.

When they heard Navi yell Link's name worriedly the four came out from behind their makeshift shelter and over to Link. After a moment Link managed to collect his wits and stand up. He hunched over for a split second before standing normally. Powder was all over his front along with a few burns.

He wiped his fingers on his left hand onto his fingerless gauntlet on the right. He pulled the gauntlet off the left hand and wiped the black powder from his face. He replaced the gauntlet and blinked the spent powder from his eyes so that he could see properly. He appeared comical with half of his face covered in soot. The cleared areas were only a little less grimy. Link ignored the group around him and walked over to where the powder keg once had been.

He knelt down and used his right hand to sort through the ashen remains of the keg. His fingers touched something solid and he brushed soot off the shaft of an arrow.

He picked up and scrutinized the shaft. His mouth formed a half-snarl, his eyes narrowed into a glare and the hand holding the arrow clenched, snapping the neck of the arrow in half; the part that was in his hand disintegrated into ash. Somehow someone had known that he would come and place the powder keg there. If Link had been any closer the force of the explosion might have killed him. He thought that maybe killing him had been the intent the entire time. His entire right arm shook violently in annoyance.

"Link? What happened?" Zelda questioned him. It didn't seem to her like Link would purposely do that to himself.

Link stood up and faced them. "Nothing." Navi lied for him. "The path's open, we should go." The Hylian walked over to his horse and jumped back onto her back. Faced with little other choice the royal family got back onto the horses the ranch had loaned out to them. They followed Link past the place where the boulder had been.

The trail curved and then the cliffs fell away on both sides to make room for a wide field. A dirt trail blazed through the grazed grass and there were fences signifying unfinished pens scattered all over the field. There were a few trees in the field, but mostly the trees in the ranch formed a thick wall around the field. Straddled over the path was a sign several yards in the air that proclaimed the place to be Romani Ranch. On either side of the sign was a low fence.

On the cliffs above where the arrow had been shot a shadow moved. The momentary light that caught the shadow broke through the darkness, revealing the cloaked figure's shoulder. The cloak was made of dark burgundy wool. The total darkness covering the figure was broken for a moment before the sunlight was overwhelmed with unnatural shadows once again. The figure stopped in front of another one like him, although this one was larger. Light permeated through the shadows much easier on the new mysterious male.

He spoke in a old, but dark voice, "It seems that he will be harder to be rid of then I originally expected. What an irksome pest. Umbra, make sure you rid of him completely."

The shadows moved at where the head was, "Yes, of course, master." In a flash the figure was gone. In another the larger one was gone as well.


	9. Chapter 3 Ranches

Sorry about the one-week delay. Life's been nagging at me. Hopefully I'll be able to get back to a relatively normal update schedule after this. Enjoy.

_**Ranches**_

* * *

_Ranches are interesting places. They are always filled with the most interesting of creatures, I find. My companions believe differently. One says that it is the oceans that are filled with the most intriguing creatures. Another believes it to be the forest. The third says the deserts. This is no surprise, they are each responsible for the places they say are the most interesting._

_They are the only thing in this world I believe to be timeless. There is nothing better then a ranch which has remained the same for so very long. Yet I know with all the knowledge I have gathered over the years that this will not stay. So my above statement was wrong. Perhaps it is that I wish that they would remain the same, but that cannot be. If something remains the same, it loses its interest and allure. But I never wish to see the way the people care for the cows and the horses and chickens to ever change._

_Ranches are places where people grow livestock and tend to the animals with a tender care I see rarely in the world below anymore. The animals are aware of no hard life. Not aware of how fragile their existences really are. They are fed and cared after. This is why I believe the animals that inhabit them to be more interesting then the ones in the forests and oceans and deserts. They all know the same life, a hard and difficult life where they must fend for their food continuously. This is why I wish that they could remain timeless, although I know they can't._

* * *

Link led the horses forward towards the only house on the ranch. Next to it was a large barn that held the cows on the ranch. Resting in the ten-yard gap between the house and the barn was an old covered wagon with several clay milk jars in the back. An old, small, white dog rested lazily in the shade created by the covering of the wagon. Two mules and two donkeys wandered around the field grazing along with the five cows that the ranch had in addition to one bull.

Link dismounted Epona. The moment he was on the ground, the mare ran off into the grassy fields to graze. When the other horses were without riders, they just stayed where they were and grazed.

Link tried to brush more of the black powder off his body and clothes.

"Link, are you sure you're all right?"

"Yeah, he's fine. It's not like bombs haven't blown up in his face before."

The king paused and examined at Link questioningly, "Bombs? You carry bombs?"

"Yeah, thirty of them...and a really large one called a powder keg. That's what exploded."

They all inspected Link. Link sent a thought to Navi. "You had to mention that, right?" Navi nodded, although no one was able to see the motion.

"Where are they? I don't see where they could go."

Link reached into one of his magical pockets and pulled out a drawstring pouch made out of a Goron's stomach. "The pouch is made of a special material and is magically enhanced so it can hold all thirty."

"And what about that powder keg? I don't think it could fit in your pocket."

"Getting that out is more painful then having one blown up in your face." Navi paused and added, "That's all Link wants to say about it."

"Grasshopper! Its good to see you!"

Link turned around and put his right hand on his hip. The royal family looked at the person that had come running up behind them, she was about Link and Zelda's age. Link was secretly grateful for the diversion in the subject.

The girl had waist length copper hair and tanned, freckled skin. She wore a simple cotton dress. She took in Link's look placidly. It didn't surprise her in the slightest that he was covered in soot, most of the time he was injured in some fashion whenever she saw him.

"My sister told me you'd bring some visitors. She told me when I asked about the horses." the teenaged girl took in the royal family. "Hi! Welcome to Romani Ranch. My name's Romani, my sister's Cremia. She's inside taking care of stuff so she said I should show you guys around the ranch." She beamed as she looked around at the fields, house and barn. "There really isn't much I suppose, but there's a lot of fun stuff here. Come on!" everything she said came out in less then three breaths.

Romani refused to let anyone ride around the ranch. So the process of walking to one of the places on the other side of the field took an hour. First, Romani showed them the stables that had been raised with Link's help in the past seven years. It was big enough to hold eight horses and enough hay to feed them.

"We built these two years ago." Romani said, "They're made to house eight horses but we only have half of that." she grinned. "We're actually trading some of our cows with Lon Lon Ranch in Hyrule for some horses. Malon's coming over today with two more horses."

"Lon Lon Ranch?"

"Yeah! Malon comes every year for the Carnival of Time."

Zelda looked over at Romani eyebrows furrowed, "The Carnival of Time?"

"Sure. Each year we hold a carnival and everyone comes to Clock Town and has a lot of fun. There are fireworks and everything. It's set for three days from now." then she suddenly switched topics. "Hey, I wanna show you the cucco pen."

For the next several hours Romani kept the royal family entertained by showing them everything around the ranch. When they got back to the barn Romani spent no less then ten minutes explaining about the ghosts. How they had used to disturb the cows every year around this time and how Link had stopped them seven years ago. During the entire explanation Link had his arms crossed and was looking up at something presumably interesting in the sky.

After the story Romani said that it was nearly time for lunch. She led the family towards the house so that they could eat. The king kept his pace back a bit to talk to Link, who was trailing a good three feet behind everyone else. Link gazed up at the king, waiting for him to talk.

"You do not believe in those ghosts, do you?"

Link nodded and shrugged, Navi spoke for him. "Sure he does. He saw them and fought them. Besides, he's seen more paranormal things then ghosts, so whatever." With that Link stepped up his pace and had Navi exclude him from the group meal.

Link used his ocarina to call Epona. Although on the other side of the field, the mare heard the notes of the song he played and galloped towards him. She whinnied when he came into sight. She started to slow down and came to a stop right beside him. He placed his hands on her spine and with a little pressure sprang onto the horse's back.

He patted her hindquarters and she shot off like an arrow. Link held loosely onto her mane and gently guided her out of the ranch's gates.

Within a minute they were where the boulder had been. Link pulled back on her mane and she walked to a stop. The mare backed away from a stone tablet shaped like a tombstone with a Sheikah eye engraved into it. Link dismounted and walked towards the area of charred grass, rock debris, and spent black powder.

He inspected every detail of his earlier mishap. He pursed his lips and frowned when he was unable to come up with anything. He thought about the arrow he had seen earlier and crushed. He could still make out the metal head of the arrow. It had to have been a fire arrow, that was the only way the powder could have ignited since the cord had not been lit.

There was only one problem with the fire arrow conclusion; he was the only one he knew of in Termina that could use that. He shook his head. None of the residents in Termina much cared for magic or bows. He was the only one in Termina that even had weapons on him all the time. Not to mention, none of them hated him.

Of course it could be an outsider that had come in. However, that made even less sense to him. Link furrowed his eyebrows trying to think. Outside of Termina and Hyrule he didn't know of anyone that used magic, or had a bow an arrow. He couldn't think of many people that had a grudge against him. Perhaps it was the same person that had tried to kill the Hylian royal family. Then they might be trying to kill him as he had stopped them before.

He shook his head and whistled for Epona. Even given that, he wanted to check one thing out first. As soon as he could he mounted his horse. Then he spurred the mare down the path the royal family had hidden behind. Right at the corner was a statue of an owl with its wings spread wide. In a few moments he turned a corner to his left and was face to face with an iron gate.

Link got off of Epona and knocked on the wooden door to his right. The loud thuds made the wooden boards shake and the door bounce in its frame. After three knocks he let his hand fall to his side as he heard footsteps inside. In a moment the door opened to a lanky man that was in his mid-thirties. He looked curiously up at the tall hero.

"Can I help you, Link?"

Navi sprang off of his shoulder where she had made her self comfortable, "Yeah. There was a boulder blocking off the way to Romani Ranch again."

The man blinked, realizing a second later the implication and question, "We haven't tried that again since you stopped us seven years ago, Link. Those arrows hurt. My brother's been sick for the past two days as well. I couldn't do that by myself even if I wanted to."

Link nodded and the door closed in his face. He turned and strode towards Epona. Grumbling as he mounted; he led her back to the ranch. He got off near the door. Epona galloped off to graze in the field once more.

Link sat on the steps and collapsed backwards against the door. He briefly toyed with the idea of going into to eat, but decided against it.

He wasn't really hungry; all he wanted to do was think. He propped an elbow against his knee and rested his fore head in the palm of his hand. He used his fingers to massage his head as he thought. Using the other hand he pulled off the elongated green cap.

Navi rested on his other knee and watched him curiously. She was able to read his thoughts and hadn't seen him struggle over something so much in a long time. She tried to work on the problem as well.

After a while Link shrugged his shoulders and leaned against the door. He lifted his eyes to the sky. He watched the clouds sluggishly move across the light blue expanse. Link ignored the outside world as he let his thoughts roam. After a while, his attention shifted from his thoughts to reality as he heard footsteps coming near the door.

Link realized that he was leaning against the door a spilt second too late. The door creaked open, and his support was lost. Navi jumped into the air. Link shot his left arm out, catching his elbow in the doorframe. There was a sensation of pain, but he managed to prevent himself from falling backwards. He leapt gently and quietly to his feet. He turned to see who had opened the door and saw that it was Zelda. Link half grinned in embarrassment. He should have heard her coming to the door sooner.

Zelda stared inquisitively at Link for a moment before looking away. She thought that he was sort of cute despite the ash all over his front without that hat on. Link replaced the hat when Zelda turned her head. He cocked his head to the side and tried to figure out why she had done so. After a moment Zelda walked down from the steps allowing her parents, Impa and Romani to follow her out.

Link waved off towards the horses, asking silently for Romani to get them. The red-haired girl nodded and ran off into the field to get the horses. The remaining members of the group turned towards Link as he leaned against the back of the house.

Before they could ask for what the teenaged hero had planned for them, Navi spoke up. "Well, next he was planning to take you guys on the boat ride tour of the Southern Swamp, or he could just take you back to town."

"We would like to take a look around the swamp, so long as it is not too smelly."

Link half-smiled at the statement and nodded. "Oh don't worry," Navi chimed in for him, "It's not smelly at all. It's just called the Southern Swamp."

When Romani brought the horses back, they were promptly mounted. They made good time in getting to the Swamp.

Upon arrival they left the horses behind and waited patiently on a wooden platform overlooking part of the swamp as Link went up to get the boat rental.

Soon afterwards they were getting seated on the boat. Link got in first and used one foot to stabilize the boat. As soon as he was sure of his footing he glanced over at the royal family when he felt the boat tip as someone jumped lightly in. He snapped his head to the left and saw Zelda. The others joined in shortly after.

He brought them through the tour of the swamp, which had been lengthened since last time he had needed it. It went around the entire swamp, and brought them around the Deku Temple.

After the tour Link brought them back to the town. There was still quite a lot of light, and it promised to remain for several more hours. When the others dismounted Link brought Epona in front of the other horses and grabbed their bridles. Navi explained why they were back so early.

"Link doesn't like being in the field at night. When it gets too dark out far too many enemies come out for his liking, and it's too hard to guard anyone for that matter. Anyway, you should get back in town. They're doing something special for you."

With that Link used the worn heels of his boots to spur Epona into a gallop. He tugged on the bridles with one hand and slowed Epona with the other to run all the way back to the ranch.


	10. Chapter 4 Swordplay

Eh, sorry for the length...I got carried away this time, just like I warned you all.

_**Swordplay**_

* * *

_I've always found swords interesting. They're very dangerous. Sharp. Deadly. Ganondorf, the fool, has used them himself. They've only cause pain and suffering. I've watched it, bristling at his used of the sword. I hate them. They hurt so many people._

_And yet, as time goes by, I've seen them help too. That courageous boy. I believe his name was Link. I was just told that by my sister. I don't really know for sure. But I've watched him wield the blade. How could someone that brings hope wield a blade? Aren't they supposed to cause pain, not hope? I never understood it._

_And yet, as I watched him fight with that blade, the Master Sword, I understood. It's why he used that sword. He used it to kill the Evil King. That's why there was hope with his sword. However, it was still dangerous, still sharp, and still deadly. My sister could have chosen a better weapon for him. Surely not a sword, perhaps magic, like my other sister chose for Zelda?_

_The sword fit evil. Not hope. Not joy. Definitely not a hero. And it definitely didn't fit a princess. Magic fit a princess. My weapon is cunning and far more clever then a sword. It fits a hero. But my sisters never would listen to me. I had designed my only weapon to be used by a hero. Now I watch as it falls into evil, as my sisters watch the hero and his stupid sword._

* * *

Zelda watched the band silently. It was a rock band made of Zora. They were actually very good. She leaned against the railing and watched them practice.

She had left Stock Pot to have a look around the town. Her parents had protested, but Impa had said she would escort the princess. She smiled to herself, she had given the Sheikah the slip about ten minutes ago. Of course, the woman was bound to find her soon.

Quietly, the crown princess wondered about their next song. Surely they weren't practicing. They were already so good.

The bartend look up at Zelda and furrowed his eyebrows to try and make out more of her figure then a dimly lighted vaguely feminine shadow. He stopped rubbing the glass bottle and placed it firmly on the wooden counter. Without looking he filled the glass with milk and slid the bottle down the counter, not even a drop spilled. He placed the rag half dangling on the edge.

"Hey, miss. This place ain't open until night."

Zelda grimaced, she had hoped she wouldn't be spotted, "My apologies. I needed a place to hide and the door was open." She half turned and smoothly waved at the door.

"You look a little old to be playin' hide 'n' seek with the littluns if you don't mind me sayin'. Anyways, now that yer inside, might as well get a glass of milk. Come on down and we'll get a look at 'cha."

Zelda descended down the stairs. Her gloved fingers sliding down the railing on the right hand side. All attention that had been fixed on her since the tend had spoken was fixed doubly so. She stepped lightly across the floor and seated herself on the farthest seat at the counter. She looked over at the tend, "Could you spare some milk, please? I'm a little thirsty."

"W-why of course, your ladyship."

Zelda waved a hand airily at the title, "Please, everyone in Hyrule uses Zelda. Or Princess Zelda if you'd feel better with that." She smiled gratefully at tend when he placed the glass in front of her. She took a delicate sip and pondered the white liquid.

"So, eh, why did you hide in here, if you don' mind me askin', er, Princess Zelda?"

"Oh, because, my escort would not allow me to talk to many people in the town, so I came in her to escape for the moment. I was planning on asking a few questions, but decided to wait until they finished playing."

One of the Zora spoke up, the guitarist, "So did you like the song, Zelda?"

"Oh, yes, quite. Wonderful. But as to the question, what do you know of the young man here, Link?"

"Oh, you be interested in hearing about that one, do ye? Well, I don't know much about him, 'cept he comes in one day and plays a couple of tunes and cheers up this sad guy that be settin' in that there seat you be sittin' in, Zelda. That be seven years ago just about now. Also he never said much, but paid for some Chateau Romani, house specialty, a couple of times."

"Oh, he did?"

"Yes. No one in Termina knows much about him. He just came one day, and left the same week. Returned a few years later with that fairy he has now. Still, never says much about where he came from through her. He just says he's here to help us as much as he can. When everyone started to hound on it, he disappeared for a while." Said the band's singer as she sat down on the stool next to the one Zelda was sitting on. The bartend gave her a glass of milk.

"But he's a real gem. Knows more about this place then anyone else does, really. Helped more of us then the town guard, that's for sure. My name's Lulu." She gulped down some of the milk before continuing. "You see, about seven years ago when he came there was a crisis everywhere. Somehow Link managed to fix all our problems from the three days before the Carnival of Time that he arrived to the day itself."

"Like what problems?"

"Well, there was something I heard about in the Deku kingdom, their princess was missing I think. The Goron had been suffering a never-ending winter. I heard about something in the Ikana region, but I've forgotten now."

"And what did he do for the Zora?"

"Oh, just about everything. In the Zora hall, our stage is the biggest part of the life there. About seven years ago I lost my voice. The pirates had stolen my eggs, so I couldn't sing." She smiled at Zelda who was entirely confused, "It's a Zora thing, really. You probably wouldn't understand it."

Zelda shook her head, "Probably not, I'm sorry."

"That's alright. Anyways, Mikau, our main guitarist at that point knew what had happened, so he went to look for them, saying he'd return that day or the day afterwards, after looking at the Great Bay Temple deep in the ocean. He said he had this weird feeling from it, like it was causing the unusually warm water, which was dangerous to my eggs. Two days later he came back, returning my voice, but then he disappeared, saying something about the Temple."

Lulu sighed and spoke to her lap. "He never returned, not even the day before the Carnival. That was when Link came to us. He explained to us with writing that Mikau had died in the temple. He had gone there to investigate it himself. He had found Mikau and had destroyed whatever curse there was in the temple. He showed us where he had brought Mikau's body.

"Now every now and then Link will show up at Zora hall and do whatever he can to help us out. Like taking stuff back from the pirates. He's really nice."

The guitarist from before leaned against the counter, "Yeah. Looking at him sometimes reminds me of Mikau. I'm Japas." He examined Zelda, "So, you never did say how you knew Link. Besides the fact that I'm sure he's playing tour guide for you."

"Well," Zelda said, she had never prepared a reason for that. If Link had never said about his past, in any form, then she felt wrong in saying the truth. She pondered the remains of the milk in the bottle while swirling them around gently. "I met Link in Hyrule when I was a lot younger, probably just before or just after he came here. Young boy, never spoke much. But he was, like you've said, kind and helpful. He stayed in Hyrule for a while, and then left without word. I was just wondering what he had been doing since last we met. I never really did expect to see him again." She drained the rest of the glass.

"Many thanks for the information. That's all I wanted to know." She stood and turned towards the bartend, "How much do I owe you for the milk?"

"Eh, the cost is usually twenty rupees, ma'am, but I mean..." A red rupee was placed next to her empty bottle. The bartend picked up the thing and looked up at where Zelda had been. She wasn't there. He searched the room and saw movement at the top of the stairs near the door. A figure was briefly illuminated by the sunlight outdoors in the doorframe before the door politely closed with a quiet _thud_.

Zelda thought that it would be many thousands of times easier to not be found by Impa if the townspeople would stop making such a wide berth for her. This made it much easier not only to find her, but to attack her as well.

She shook her head to rid herself of the idea. She thought that it might be best to find Impa. She had escaped the Sheikah in the middle of the southern part of Clock Town. Best to start there. She made her way through the grand archway to the largest section of town.

She stopped to examine the building that greeted her vision as she entered South Clock Town. It was under construction for the Carnival of Time. She took a few steps closer to the tower. She spotted the only figure zipping around the tower. She stopped in mid-step to get a closer look at him. She smiled to herself upon finding out that it was Link and watched him work on the tower. She wondered if he had returned the horse to the ranch. It had been only an hour to two hours since they had come back to town. She decided to wait to ask him when he was finished.

Link was in the middle of pounding the last nail for the day into the tower when Zelda spotted him.

"Hey, Navi, how come I always get stuck doing odd jobs like this?"

"I don't know, Link. Maybe because you help everyone all the time, that when they see you they always ask you for help?" Navi responded in the sarcastic.

"But still, shouldn't he be able to rely on his workers instead of me to get this tower up in time?" Link stood up, dropped the hammer to the stone before, it bounced and rolled. He began to climb down.

"Hey! Look, Zelda!"


	11. Chapter 4 Swordplay 2

"Hey! Look, Zelda!" 

Link paused while climbing down to look in the general direction of Navi's dancing. He spotted the princess of Hyrule. He momentarily lost his careful grip on the wooden beam and fell. He grimaced, knowing full well that there was no more purchase for the ten feet he would fall. The moment his feet touched the ground he crouched to better absorb the shock of the land. He snatched the hammer he had dropped before and stood up.

"Well, that was one of your more embarrassing situations." Navi told him, laughing. Then she added, "I thought I'd get some sort of reaction out of you with that."

"Shut up, Navi. I slipped. Nothing else." Link thought at her while making his way towards the head carpenter that had been watching him.

"Because you saw..."

Link pointed a finger threateningly at the fairy. "Don't, Navi. I slipped because _you _distracted me suddenly."

Navi kindly shut up about the subject for Link as they got within earshot of the main carpenter, but only after whispering the sarcastic "Yeah, _right_," to him. Link handed him the hammer and gave him the tool belt he had been wearing.

"Thanks a lot there, Link."

Link nodded and replaced his sword, shield, quiver, and bow on his back. While he was doing this, Navi spoke up.

"Yeah. Link says that he might not be able to help you tomorrow though, so you should try and get your workers to do the work for you."

"Oh, alright then."

Link turned around and went to go talk to Zelda. She was standing where she had been and was watching him. She gave Link an amused smile when he got close enough. Before he questioned her, she explained.

"Sorry, but that was really skillful of you, Link."

Link bit his lip as an embarrassed smirk graced his face. He shrugged of the emotion as Navi spoke, "Hi, Zelda. So why are you here?"

"I was walking around town with Impa, but then I lost her. While I was looking for her I found you."

Link nodded, "I suppose she's looking for you?"

"Yes. I think that she might be back at Stock Pot Inn, that's where she told me to go if I lost sight of her for too long."

"Then we should bring you back to the Inn."

"Oh, yes. Of course. Let's go."

Link took the time to examine her face before turning to lead her back to the Inn. He honestly couldn't understand her. Didn't she want to make sure she was safe? She obviously wasn't safe by herself. Of course, he reasoned, it could be dangerous inside the Inn as well. But he was sure he would have heard about it if it was by now.

Certainly she was in more danger outside. It wasn't like he could shield her from any attack. Then why did she look so reluctant when she agreed to go back to the Inn? Then again, he wouldn't like to be stuck in a building all day long. Maybe she just wanted to look around some more. Not that it particularly mattered to him.

They walked back up the stairs towards the Inn, which was right across from the Milk Bar Zelda had found haven in before. Zelda smiled sheepishly when she spotted Impa waiting outside for her.

"Hello, Impa."

"Princess Zelda. I'm glad you came across Link before anything serious could happen."

"Yes, Impa, would you mind if I looked around the town some more with Link?" Link stopped in mid-step. He had been in the process of leaving. The hero turned around slowly and stared at Zelda like she had grown another head.

"No, I don't suppose that it would be a problem, Zelda."

Zelda offered Impa a smile and turned to face Link. The lad sighed, shrugged his shoulders and followed Zelda out of the town as Impa went into the Inn. The moment that they were outside the city walls, Link turned a sharp glance at Zelda, eyebrows half-furrowed and half-raised.

Navi spoke up hastily, "What's up?"

"It's nothing, but I just wanted to ask you something."

"And that is?"

"What happened, exactly, after you left Hyrule, Link?"

Link shrugged, "Nothing beyond the usual hero stuff, saving the world."

"Usual hero stuff?"

Link leaned against one of the adobe walls, "Yeah." Navi said casually as she sat upon Link's head, "Well, maybe not that usual. The moon being this creature that wanted to eat the world was definitely weird."

"Moon?"

"Oh, well, when Link first got here, he met this Skull Kid that stole his ocarina. When he chased it, he was turned into a Deku Scrub. And then he met the man from the Happy Mask Shop who promised to turn him back to normal if he got the mask the Skull Kid stole and his ocarina back. Getting the ocarina was easy, but it took him a long time to get the mask back, and that involved a moon crashing towards the town that he had to stop, and the moon turned out to be this thing that wanted to consume everything."

Zelda shook her head in disbelief, not at the story, but the attitude Link presented through Navi, "And that's usual hero stuff?"

Link shrugged, "Sure. Why not? I mean, heroes are always saving the world from something, aren't they? That's how it is in every story about heroes and legends. So saving the world from a hungry moon classifies as usual hero stuff."

Zelda smiled, and shook her head again. "Just one more question."

"What?"

"I talked to some Zora earlier. They said you helped them..."

"To get the mask back he had to go to places North, South, East, and West of Clock Town to get the help of some giants that would stop the moon from crashing. The Zora were to the West and to get to the giant there he had to help them out..."

"So, what happened to Mikau? Their guitarist? They said you had found him."

"He did. But not in the way they told you. When he first got to the Great Bay, Mikau was in the water, nearly dead. He managed to get him back to shore, and Mikau died..."

"But, the temple...?"

"That was a cover-up so that he wouldn't have to explain to them that he had been going around as Mikau for the next two days."

"How did you manage that?"

Link slipped a hand into the leather pouch on his belt. He reached in, after a few seconds he pulled out a mask that took the shape of a Zora head. The sun glinted off the glass eyes. "With this. He used this mask to take the form of Mikau as a kid, it barely fits now." Link put the mask back into the pouch and looked up at the princess with anguished eyes, "Is that all?"

Zelda shook her head, the question about the horses didn't seem quite smart right now. She figured that it was probably just another one of the tricks that Link had picked up in Termina. "Just, why did you fall earlier?"

"He fell, it happens sometimes." The answer would have been convincing, if Navi hadn't burst out into sudden hysterical laughter at the end. Zelda raised an eyebrow at the fairy, while Link nonchalantly swatted at her with the back of his hand. The fairy stopped immediately, "Anyways, it's going to be dark out soon and it's not safe. You should get back into town."

Zelda's features formed a graceful frown and her eyebrows furrowed just a centimeter. "What do you mean by that?"

Link cast a hurried glance up on the wall, he was certain that the shadows there had moved but a second ago, and the tail end of a cloak disappearing into the shadows. Something about it, aside from the sheer physical impossibility of the movement, just irritated him. The irritation was when he knew something was going to happen, and he was _not_ going to like it. He thought desperately to think of something for Navi to say that would get Zelda back into town. It wasn't safe for her out here.

Then he noticed a faint red gleam in the shadows of the wall. He turned back to the princess, trying to think of a decently polite way to get her into town. Navi came to his relief with reason.

"Because, the monsters that wander around here at night have been acting up, and coming out earlier. It would be a _lot _safer if you went back into town."

Zelda frowned, about to argue. Link frowned, grabbed her forearm and pulled her into the archway entrance. Halfway through he let go. The hero glanced back at her and continued to walk forward.

Zelda followed, trying not to run to keep up with him. "Link...?" She called out, ignoring the look she received from the guards. He stopped his stride only when they were in front of the inn. Link looked at her, waiting for her to continue.

"What's going on, Link?"

Link shook his head, preferring not to answer. He grabbed the doorknob, and pulled it open. The young Hylian male waved towards the inside of the inn, waiting for her to go through.

Zelda, half-infuriated from his recent behavior, didn't go in. His impatience had made her impartial to listening to the gesture. However, when she saw Impa waiting for her inside, she had no choice but to go in. The door closed after she was in. Link strode back out of town, hand ready to grab the sword on his back.

Up in the shadows, a figure smirked. He let go of his grasp on the ledge of the wall protecting the city. So the hero could see the evil gleam in his eyes. It was only to be expected. Link was the Hero of Time who had destroyed Ganondorf after all. He departed from the general area of the city, in case Link decided to come back out. He dashed to the shade of the trees, black cloak masking him, as he moved.


	12. Chapter 5 Memories

Hello. If you noticed the large jump in chapters it's because I decided to break the chapters into smaller and more manageable parts. Each section of a chapter will be no longer then 4 word pages. Each chapter will still be intensely long. However, if a chapter does not make more than 6 pages, I do not break it up. Deal with it, you have to read.

_**Memories**_

* * *

_I've noticed that people get trapped within their own memories. They allow the past to effect their lives. Time long since past dictates how they move. Some are so entranced by older times that they allow situations vaguely similar to those past times to completely change their reaction to the situation, instead of handling it as it is, no correlation to their past._

_However, I've never felt such a thing looking upon the Hero of Time. He doesn't dwell in times past; he dwells in the current times. He thinks of things as they happen. The Hero thinks nothing of time, perhaps that's because he was allowed to pass through time, give it no heed._

_The hero is the perfect choice for my lost art, my ancient magic. It can only be used by one that thinks not to undo time. One who cares little for time past, and who only cares for time as it is._

* * *

Link stared at the horizon on the ocean as the sun rose behind him in the east. He idly chewed a string of dried meat in his mouth, his breakfast. Half the jerky stuck out the corner of the opening as he did so.

Navi rested on his chest, gently rising and falling with the diaphragm. She stared up at his face as he thought. She let his thoughts wash gently across her, like the waves of the ocean that lapped against Link's leather boots.

He had propped his elbow into the sand to stare at the farthest edges of the ocean. Even when he had sailed as far out as the Great Bay Temple, he never had seen anything on it; not even when he had used his old pictograph box on zoom to look at it.

Link liked to contemplate the horizon. He had never seen anything quite as expansive in Hyrule, and nothing since. He always wondered what lie in wait beyond it. What adventures could be found, what new lands were there. Link only liked to think about it at sunrise or sunset.

Link craved the adrenaline rush. Never knowing if the following day would bring life or death. He wanted some grand heroic quest, just to shake himself out of this rut. As much as he loved the simplicity of this lifestyle, it was too plain for his liking.

When the sun hadn't even started to slip over the horizon, Link stood. He shoved the rest of the meat into his mouth, and ate it. Navi sprang up into the air. She hated the grand adventures, always worrying if this would be Link's last day, if she would lose him; the only person to care about her opinion, even though he got annoyed with her.

Link pulled out his ocarina and called Epona from the dune grass thirty meters off where she had gone to graze for the morning. He mounted the mare. Whatever the day may bring, it was time to go to Termina.

He rode Epona over towards Clock Town, rounding up the ranch's horses from the nearby fields as he went. He tied them to a pole near the western edge Clock Town, and went in. He navigated himself through the area before entering East Clock Town right in front of the inn. When Link arrived at the inn and came in, he noticed that the king was waiting for him, but none else. Link quirked his eyebrows, not ever Kafei or Anju was at the front desk.

The king noticed his glance go around the room and spoke only when the blue eyes were fixed upon him.

"Zelda and Impa will be accompanying you today. We have other things that require our attention. They're getting ready right now."

Link nodded, and leaned against the wall. His fairy accompaniment perched herself on top of his head, "Okay."

"I was hoping to have a word with you, young man."

Link told Navi not to say anything. He turned towards the king, still leaning against the wall, arms crossed. He nodded his head and kept his gaze focused on the king.

"Ah good. I was wondering, if you've ever been to Hyrule?"

Link paused, thought it over, and nodded. "Yes, he has, about seven years ago."

"I see. How come I never herd of you coming? All visitors are supposed to come to the castle upon entrance."

Link looked over at Navi nonchalantly. "Oh, that's because at the time he didn't have a choice, he came in through the forest. He only stayed there long enough to know that he had gotten lost and wound up in Hyrule."

Link was silently angry at the lie, they always felt bad, but grateful that Navi had thought of an excuse so quickly. The king took the falsehood very well. He nodded, "Probably on some wild adventure I assume?"

Link nodded, "Yes, he was."

"So, could you tell me why you have a forest fairy, and wear the garb similar to the Kokiri?" The king looked Link square in the eye.

Link shrugged as Navi whispered into his ear. He didn't really care what the king thought of him for his past, but he didn't feel like telling him it either. Link's past would be stranger sounding than a lie would be. "He's heard that a few times from Hylians." That was the truth. Visiting Hylians that knew of the Kokiri said he looked like one; some inhabitants of the Lost Woods never hesitated in stating the fact either. But he never responded to them, it wasn't a story worth telling.

The king accepted the shrug to be that Link didn't know, not what it actually had meant when Navi had whispered to him earlier. "Thank you. That has been bothering me. You look like another young man I knew when I was your age. Strikingly familiar, if I do say so."

At that point in time Zelda and Impa walked into the room. Link fixed his attention upon them gratefully for the distraction in the conversation. He got the feeling that he didn't like the direction the chat with the king was going. The king turned around.

"Ah, I see you two are ready for the day."

Zelda nodded, "Yes, we are, Father." She took a few steps past him towards Link. Impa followed the young princess with arms crossed. Zelda turned back towards him, "I hope that you and Mother get everything that you need to do done."

"I'm quite sure that we will. Enjoy your day." He turned around and steadily climbed the stairs at a speed that was neither fast nor slow.

Zelda smiled half-heartedly at Link as he turned towards the door.

"So where are we going today, Link?"

Link took only enough time to offer her a mischievous grin before stealing out of the door. "Somewhere special. But we have to get there soon." Navi called out after the hero.

He led them out of East Clock town into South Clock town. They went around the back of the large clock tower that gave the town its name and into and out of the western area of Clock Town. They mounted the horses that had been standing there impatiently. Link sent the extra two horses out in a Southern direction. He knew that they would make their way back to the ranch.

As soon as Link gave the signal, Epona rushed off. She galloped at a faster pace then the day before, but not so fast that the older, slower horses Zelda and Impa rode couldn't keep up. Since the horses couldn't take the stairs that led directly up to Clock Town, the ramp had eroded down the middle since he had first come here sufficed. Link led them down to the lower part of the field.

In a matter of minutes, the hooves of the horses came in contact with the sand. Travel became quite a bit more difficult. Within the half-hour they were back near the great marble staircase. They turned to their left, past small jumps.

They passed black iron gates twice Link's height that had been opened barely wide enough to allow travel. The black iron was stained in rust. The lower bars of the gates had been ground away by the sand. They showed the signs of several years of weathering. The gates did not bar the path completely, blue stone walls half a meter across had been placed next the walls, half buried in the sand.

Beyond the gates, was a trail. They went through a trail three meters across. The path trail was narrow and winding. It was littered with blue stones buried in the sand, lying on their side, half a meter up from the sand making navigation very difficult. Link chose to jump over the minor obstacles. Epona stamped impatiently after each jump, waiting for the other two to make their way carefully around the stones.

They came out of the trail, it gave way on both sides to a large sandy expanse. The sand stretched in front of them for many meters before turning into water. In the center of the small bay, a house stood, held up two or three meters in the air by sturdy metal pillars driven into the bay's floor. In front of the house was a floating platform with an owl statue on the right ledge. There were three palm trees on the beach, and two houses to their left, half-hidden by cliff. At the edge of the horizon between the cliffs to their right and the house in the bay, but far into the horizon, were several stone spikes arrange in a circular pattern. To the left of the house at the edge of the horizon was a large stone fish, carved to be twisting madly in the air. The form could be seen almost perfectly from their vantage point.

Behind the house and slightly to its right, the moon had half slipped behind the ocean. It's reflection pouring across the waters. Behind them, an orange-pink glow had begun to consume the sky, it turned the waters near them a soft orange while the water's colors slowly became black at the horizon.

Zelda stared at the sight. To Link, Navi, and anyone else who ever was at the beach early in the morning, the sight was a mere nothing. But to the crown princess, it was breath taking. The largest body of water was lake Hylia, and even then it was surrounded by mountains on all sides. In fact, every edge of Hyrule was bordered in some mysterious fashion by ancient oaks, deep forests, other kingdoms and mountains. Zelda had never gotten to see the sun until it was deep into the morning. The sight of the ocean itself was overwhelming.


	13. Chapter 5 Memories 2

"That's...beautiful." Zelda turned in her saddle to look at Impa. The older woman only nodded. 

"My people often spoke of a body of water that went to the edge of the world. I've never seen an ocean before."

Zelda took the long chain of words as a gesture of the Sheikah's own silent approval of the sight. She turned towards Link. "Thanks for sharing the sight."

Link nodded. He had known that Zelda would like it. The young hero planned to show her the sunset as well; it was a sight to behold itself. Still, he appreciated the view of the ocean at sunrise.

"Is there anything else here?"

Link waved to his right, towards the cliffs that bordered the bay. "There's an all female pirate group hidden over there." He pointed at the house, "A scientist lives there. He helps the Zora hatch their eggs, because sometimes the ocean's too warm." He waved towards his left into the ocean, "The Zora Hall is over there." He sat back in his saddle, considering. "It's near impossible to get anywhere at the beach without getting wet."

Zelda looked at him, "Where was Mikau's grave?"

Link thumbed behind him, towards the cliffs to the southern side of the trail. A rotting wooden branch stood there, bent towards the houses. Fish bones lay scattered around the base of the cross; in a former state they would have formed a guitar. Zelda hopped down from the sidesaddle and walked over to the grave, offering a silent prayer to the goddesses.

When she was done with the task she turned towards Link, the moon fully setting behind him. "So where were you going to take us today?"

Link grinned and thumbed towards the horse Zelda had left. She understood the gesture and mounted it again. Together, the group rode away from the beach and out the trail. Before they were too far from it, Zelda cast one glance back at the ocean. Remembering the view.

Link led them back through the winding trail, and back up towards Clock Town. They ran around on carved dirt that formed an ancient text that none could read to the north. A large gray mountain came up on the northern side. The continued around Clock Town, coming upon its eastern side.

Link spurred the horses forward, the grass below them changed to dirt and rock. Several stone pillars rose from the ground, three to a side creating a path from the entrance of Clock Town to the trail that lead out of Termina. By the time the horses had galloped into the trail, the sun was already rising over the edges of the canyon that lay before them. As the horses trotted through the canyon, the river carved path became wider. They came upon several series of cast iron fences.

Link jumped over the first fence without much to-do. He dismounted Epona and walked over to the fence the princess and guard were faced with. He waved towards them; they backed the horses away a few feet. Link walked along the fence, looking around it, scrutinizing every piece of metal in it. Finally, satisfied, he shoved with his entire weight around the middle of the fence. It slowly gave and swung open with a lot of effort and groaning.

Link paused to catch his breath once it was wide enough for a person to pass through. Then he walked over towards the other fence and repeated the process. That hidden gate took quite a lot more effort to open then the other. Finally, the group was able to pass, on foot.

There was a high cliff wall, with a lone dead tree growing at the middle of the top. It was a good thirty feet or so about their heads. To their left the high wall gave way to a series of high steps. "We could either go to the graveyard, or with some trouble we could go up."

"What's up there?"

"People. Water."

"How do we get up?"

"Impa can get up by herself, right?" At this the Sheikah nodded, "Then Link can take Zelda up the cliff. But only if you want to."

Zelda nodded, nearly too eagerly. She loved to explore, but being a princess, she rarely ever got the chance to. Impa created a bright flash of light. By the time Zelda and Link could see again, Impa was at the top of the cliff.

Link sized up the wooden stump, and took a few steps back. He reached into his pockets for something. He turned his eyes towards Zelda while searching his pocket. Navi flew nearer to the princess to tell her something.

"Link says that the only way up is to hold onto him."

Zelda stared at Link, his face was serious. He was still searching in the pocket of his tunic for something, probably a way up the cliff.

"Unless you have your own way up."

Zelda shook her head. She stepped towards him and clung to his side. Link finally found what he had been looking for and pulled out a small device that had a trigger, a button, a handle, and a barbed tip. He put a hand around her waist to make sure she didn't fall and aimed the barbed tip at the tree. He pulled the trigger.

The barbed tip shot out of the device like an arrow. A spring-loaded chain flew out behind it. The spine drove into the tree; there was a faint splintering sound as it buried itself in. When the line was taut and stationary, Link released the trigger and felt his shoulder nearly be yanked out of its socket. The two were pulled up very quickly to the top of the cliff.

Link pressed the button; the tip fell out of the tree, no longer barbed. He let go of Zelda and held the button down and the chain instantly recoiled, end going back to its original position.

"What is that thing?" Zelda managed to gasp out as she stepped away from Link. The fast speed at which the chain had yanked them up had been simply exhilarating. She had never had more fun.

"It's called a hookshot. It helps Link go distant places so long as the head can bury itself into something and stick." Link shoved the thing back into his tunic. He waved them onwards and walked forwards, several rock boulders littering the path they followed.

Shortly, they came upon another widening, the cliff dropping away to the right and sticking closer to the left. The area was covered in grass and about ten, fifteen meters in front of them was a river. It stretched with more length then Link could jump alone. A platform stuck out over the far edge of the river, to it's left was a waterfall, crashing into the river. Across the platform on their side was another, it went down to the water's level, had a stone carving on the part that was mere inches above the current. That platform was much lower in elevation then the other. A small stone pilled jutted out of the ground to the right near the river's edge.

Zelda walked forward and went to the river's edge. It had a strong current. She looked to her right, downstream and saw not much to save her if she fell in, except the platform. Link strode towards where Zelda was, and stopped short when the crunch of grass under his boots was disturbed.

He scrutinized the area below his feet. A small black circle had been painted there. He stepped away from it, and noticed that thin strokes of black paint formed a circle, thirty feet in diameter from the smaller circle he had stepped on; they were invisible unless looked for. Link turned around and waved at Impa, trying to get her out of the circle. Impa, although confused, took the cue and stepped backwards, out of the area.

Zelda had stopped looking at the river and stared at Link curiously. Then the paint began to glow a blood red. Link made sure that Zelda and Impa were outside. He knew he was definitely caught inside whatever trap this was. Flames sprouted out of the ground: orange and red in coloration and black at their very tips. They formed around the outer edges of the circle, trapping Zelda in a corner. The center circle Link had unwittingly trod upon began to pulsate, glow black, and grown. Link stepped away from it; hand ready to draw his sword.

From out of the ground a shadowy figure formed. When the shadow had fully formed, color came to it. It had a man's height, but twice his width at the shoulders. A dark purple cloak covered it from head to mid calf, casting its face into darkness. It wore pointed gold shoes that went up to the edges of the cape. From the sides of the cape two swords formed, and their tips were instantly shrouded in the same flames that trapped Link.

Link's eyes widened in recognition of the foe. It was a Garo Master, he had fought it only once as a child, near this area in fact. The fight had been long and arduous. He had been hit by those swords when coated in normal fire; he had no idea how painful this new fire would be to the touch. He took his shield out; there was no point in mulling over why it was there. It just was.

The Garo took the offensive. It leapt towards Link with sped the hero did not recall. He lifted his shield up; he could feel the heat coming around the reflective surface. Link jumped towards the side as the Garo backed away.

Link took a moment to inspect his shield and found it to be in fighting condition. As the Garo leapt towards him again, Link dodged to the side. He brought his sword up to attack the fiend in the momentary shock he felt sure to be there. But the Garo had a quicker recovery time then he recalled as well. It swung one sword down at Link while using the other to block his attack.

Link backed away from the blow, letting his arm give into the strike as it dug into his left triceps. The sword was removed, with a lot of pain. Link now knew how much pain the fire brought. More then regular fire, a lot more. But because of the fire's intense heat, the wound had been closed and did not bleed. It just hurt. Link cursed in his head and took a defensive stance. This was similar to the Garo Master he had fought, but it was new and improved. His old fighting style would not work. He thought, and dodged attacks, trying to formulate a strategy. Finally one came to him, it was dirty, but so was this entire fight.

He put his shield back on his back, and used the now free hand to draw a dagger from it's sheath that had been bound to the sheath of his sword. The dagger was the proper size of a sword for a child, and had a diamond pattern of gold. The blade's edge was razor sharp.

He had never properly duel-wielded before, but had been forced to a few years back on several occasions. He knew the in and outs, and felt sure this was a good defensive and offensive strategy.

As the Garo attacked him, Link side stepped to his right again. Link used his sword to attack the Garo Master, it blocked the blow and brought the second sword down on him. But this time Link was ready. He used the dagger to deflect the sword and knock the arm away. He felt the fire lick at his fingers before freeing the blade. The very instant the Garo Master twisted with the force of Link's deflection, he used the dagger and stabbed its side. When he pulled the blade out, a red substance coated it up to the hilt and then billowed off as black smoke.

The Garo jumped backwards, nearly unaffected by the blow. Link's face twitched as his arm shot fiery complaints up and down his nervous system. The one hit by the Garo Master could have decided the fight, no matter the number of clever schemes Link came up with.

However, the Garo did not learn and attacked again the same way. Link jumped to his left, and attacked with the dagger. This time when he blocked and deflected it was with his sword. The Garo was almost nearly prepared, but with the extra leverage of the sword's length, he had applied more force. This gave him a greater opportunity to strike. He slashed his sword in the horizontal, cutting deep into the foe's side. When the Garo jumped back this time, Link felt the ends of his fingers singed.

The Garo learned from the last attack and gave Link no recovery time. It jumped over his head. Link twisted around to face his opponent, just in time to see it leaping at him, swords crossed. Link forced himself to fall backwards, but the swords caught his sides. The Garo master withdrew them, lengthening the injuries. Link grimaced in pain. He had to end this soon.

The Garo lept backwards again. Link only turned to face it halfway. He saw it jump at him with the same attack pattern as before out of the corner of his eyes. Link hit the dirt rolling. When he stood again he thrust his sword forward, the Garo had been unprepared for the sudden dodge and attack. It staggered to the side from the hit. Link wasted no time and slicing it in two.

The enemy dissolved into black smoke, and the flames died down. Link panted and put his sword and dagger away. He held his side and looked for Zelda. He had seen Impa rush forwards as soon as she could, but he could not see Zelda.

During the fight after Link had been hit the second time, the princess had heard a deep evil sounding chuckle. She sought for the source, tearing her eyes from the battle, praying that Link would make it out unscathed. For as far as she could see, there was nothing unusual about the area.

However, the shadow of the stone pillar had caused her to double take. It was several shades darker, nearer to pitch black then anything else, then it had been before. She examined her shadow, in case the unnatural hue was caused by the fire. However, she noticed that he shadow was not nearly as dark, and it flickered with the fire's light, the pillar's stayed completely still.

She shivered, despite the warmth of the fire near her. The shadow gave an evil feeling that made her tremble. She was well proved right. For after Link had rolled, a hand snatched her wrist from the shadow. A black boot stepped out, along with the front edges of a cloak. The hand nearly crushed her wrist and she couldn't help but wince from the pain. She _heard_ the shadow figure smirk from it's dark depths.

As soon as Link stabbed the Garo for the last time, she was thrown into the river with a force that she barely could believe. She landed halfway across the river; the current dragged her downstream, her water-soaked skirts pulling her down. The hand retracted and the shadow returned to normal.


	14. Chapter 6 Beaches

Hello, fine friendly folks, I bring you another update. This is the beginning of cliffhangers everywhere, and not a spoiler to read. Ha!

_**Beaches**_

* * *

_The beach is a wonderful place. As the sun rises the water is painted a wonderful gradient of colorations. A sunset the beach comes alive with much more brilliant shades. For the entire day throughout the beach, the waters roll onto the sandy shores. The beach truly is a thing of beauty to behold._

* * *

Impa had noticed the hand grabbing the princess, but was unable to do a thing, cut off from her ward by the ring of fire. As soon as she could she rushed towards the pillar, expecting an enemy. She saw nothing, absolutely nothing. She inspected the river, wondering if Zelda had fallen.

Link rushed over to the water and saw Zelda. He prepared himself for pain, pulled out the leather pouch, and fished out a mask. He dove into the water, fitting the Zora shaped mask over his face. Link drowned out his pain as the mask shifted his body into a Zora.

The Zora had a large fish skeleton on his back, that was shaped like a guitar. His entire right arm was painted with red and purple geometrical patterns. Purple tattoos went down the center of his skull. The Zora dove into the water, barely making a splash. Link swam down the river with enhanced speed, and a low amount of pain from his earlier injuries.

In no time he caught up with Zelda and used his left arm to grab onto her waist while using his right arm and legs to swim against the current. It took some effort with Zelda's waterlogged skirts, but he made it back to the platform.

Zelda weakly clambered up onto the wooden deck. Impa helped to haul her to her feet. Link followed suit soon after, when Zelda was far enough away from the edge. Zora feet spread a thin layer of water onto the deck. The tiny puddle spread and fell off the edge.

Link lifted a dripping hand to his face, pulling the mask off. There was a flash of light as his body returned to normal. Link had to use an elbow to keep from falling over in pain. He used his other hand to hold the injured sides. The pain burned anew throughout his body with the sudden shape shifting.

"Link, are you alright?"

The hero glanced up at Zelda, who had turned to him with concern. He managed a numb nod. The pain had dulled to a throb that sent the feeling of pins and needles all over his torso. Those flame swords hurt.

With a shuddering sigh, Link used both arms to pull his body up into a seated position on the grass. He carefully stood up. The hero rubbed at the injuries carefully. Even for the wounds the pain should have mostly dissipated by now, at least so much that it wouldn't bother him.

Zelda and Impa walked up the ramp towards the hero. "Was that Mikau?"

Link nodded. He noticed that the mask was still in his hand. He shoved the thing back into its respective pouch.

"Why...?"

"Because, he gets more swimming power as a Zora, and it's easier to swim without needing to hold your breath."

"Oh."

Impa spoke, "You said there were people and water up here."

Link nodded, "Yes," he pointed towards the cliff edge, "Up there. I'm going to go up and check the area myself though first. I checked this placed about an hour before getting you guys, but look what happened."

Zelda nodded, "Alright."

Link pulled out his ocarina. He put the instrument to his lips and played a melody; one unfamiliar to Zelda. When the song was finished, large transparent bird wings sprouted out of Link's back. They wrapped around him, and he dissolved.

Moments later he reappeared at the top of the cliff above the river. A good half foot in front of the boy was an owl statue with its wings spread wide. Link looked around and was pleased to see that the area had no unfriendlies, save for a few pesky birds that were easily dealt with. For good measure he walked around and saw no of the strange symbols on the ground.

He went to the cliff edge and peered down. Navi flew down to Zelda and Impa.

"Alright, the area's clear. He's going to create a few platforms in the water for you guys to cross over to the other side of the river. He's assuming you," Navi flew towards Impa, "can get up the same way as before. He has a different method for Zelda this time."

Link pulled the bow off his back and over the shield. He pulled an arrow out of the quiver and knocked it. An icy breeze and chilly blue glow spread back towards Link from the arrowhead. He aimed the arrow and let it loose.

The arrow hit its mark, exactly one foot from the edge of the first platform. The water flash froze around the shaft and rose up two feet from the surface, nearly level with the first platform. Another arrow was fired, and another platform came into existence.

Zelda skipped over the platforms and hopped onto the other one next to the waterfall with the grace and elegance fitting a princess. Impa hopped over much less gracefully, but quicker and lighter.

Link pulled a rope off the branch of the tree right above the two. He pulled out a metal chain with two loops at the end as well. The rope had a loop around one end as well. He lashed the chain around the thickest part of the tree, feeding one of the loops through the other. Then he shoved the end of the rope with the loop through the free loop in the chain. The rest of the rope was feed through the loop in the rope, making a secure knot; secure enough to haul a decently fit person up the rock face.

He made a small lasso on the free end of the rope, made sure it wouldn't tighten, and tossed it down. Navi fluttered down with it to give more instructions.

"Just put that around your waist or sit on it. Link will pull you up. It's not graceful or comfortable, he knows. But it will work." Impa waited until Zelda was secure in the seat of the lasso and a ways up before walking off to cast her blinding Sheikah magic.

Link carefully hauled Zelda up the ledge, muscles in one arm tensing before letting the other hand release the rope to pull her up another length. Impa appeared in a flash of light two feet to Link's left. She inspected the area and edged towards Link.

"You said this area was clear."

"He did..." Navi turned around and saw the upper part of the canyon, "because it was earlier..." Link groaned a little, cursing in his head.

"Faeore hates me." He thought. As soon as Impa had disappeared he had heard them. Their chuckles, the wings flapping in the air, the blue flames burning bright around them. The area was full of Blue Bubbles, night-time enemies that normally never saw the light of day. He had noticed their frequent dusk appearances throughout Termina field and it had filled him with a fair bit of concern, but he didn't think they would dare appear in the middle of the day like this.

"Hey, Impa, could you finish pulling Zelda up while Link fights them off?"

Impa nodded and grabbed the ropes from Link. Link let go and allowed Impa to pull Zelda up. Impa, as a Sheikah, as naturally a lot stronger then a normal Hylian female, and she had been training in combat for her entire life, and she was nearly as strong as Link was. This was no trouble for the middle-aged woman.

Link grumbled, coming up with ideas that involved the fates, blood, and his sword. He pulled the shield off his back, unleashing the sword into the air. Then he stopped to notice something; like the fire of the Garo Master and flame ring that had trapped him, the Blue Bubbles' blue flames were tipped in black.

He pretended to think nothing of it, his earlier injuries still burning as if they were fresh. Still, it didn't hurt to be too careful. His hand tightened, increasing his hold on the shield until his knuckles turned white. Link edged towards one of the enemies with a cautious, yet unflinching, gait.

One of the Bubbles noticed Link and flew straight at him. Fortunately for Link, this enemy had no more of a brain then the normal Blue Bubbles. He slashed his sword; the flying skull with bat wings crumpled under the force and immediately turned to ash, incinerated by its own nefarious fire. Link noticed the second enemy crash into his side, chuckle and fly backwards to ram him again. Perhaps they weren't as dumb as before after all.

Link's left hand jerked backwards against his will and sheathed the sword. In its entirety, his body was coated in blue that turned black on the nose, ears, fingers and the toes of his boots. He grumbled.

"Hey!" Navi shouted, succeeding in bringing more enemy attention on Link if that was her intent, "You've been jinxed! Now you can't use a sword to defeat them."

"That's what you think, Navi."


	15. Chapter 6 Beaches 2

"Hey!" Navi shouted, succeeding in bringing more enemy attention on Link if that was her intent, "You've been jinxed! Now you can't use a sword to defeat them." 

"That's what you think, Navi." Link thought, ignoring Navi's "huh?" reaction to the thought. He replaced his shield and lifted his left hand towards the hilt of his sword and continued backwards. Three inches beyond the haft he clenched the air, pretending to hold onto a sword hilt. Pretending only for a moment.

A sword materialized in his hand. The sword was long enough to come to his chin from the ground. The blade was a shade of magenta; the blunt side tinted a lime green in an elongated hexagonal pattern. Inside the hexagon, a pattern of black roses had carefully been painted in opposing directions on both ends and on both sides.

Link was slightly embarrassed to hold the sword, the colors awkward for him now. However, as a kid the sword had been useful in situations like these, and he had never given up his possession of the magically crafted sword.

Link used both hands to wield the weapon, simply out of habit and its length. He readied the blade for the next attack by the enemy. A red glow pulsated around the sharp end and released as its holder spun around. A wave of crimson energy burst forth from the blade, instantaneously destroying the five Bubbles that had come near him.

During this time Zelda had made it safely to the top of the cliff, just in time to see him get jinxed. She watched in awe as he pulled out the larger sword without even missing a beat. She looked around, the area was now clear. Zelda carefully made her way towards Link as the hero sheathed the blade into thin air.

"That's a Bubbles jinx, isn't it?"

Link nodded, fruitlessly brushing at his tunic to be rid of the jinx, "It wears off after a few minutes." Link walked towards a house that was next to the river that fed the waterfall. A large water wheel spun lackadaisically with the lazy currently of the stream. There were large phonographs attached to the roof of the house playing a tune Zelda hadn't noticed until taking in the house.

"Hey! Come on, some people live up here. They'll have a fire so you can get dry. He told them you were coming."

Link knocked on the door as Impa came up to them. The door opened a beat later. The door opened to a girl wearing a crimson dress with pink trim that came down to her knees. She had shoulder length brown hair that shone, probably her most attractive quality. Not that she was ugly, but she was just a plain, average girl.

"Hi!" She said stepping to the side, "Come on in. My father's doing some research and will come up later." As Zelda and Impa walked in, she added an after thought, "My name's Pamela." She looked towards Link, "Are you coming in?"

Link shook his head, forsaking the group meal, "Nope."

Zelda looked at him curiously, "Again?"

He nodded, "Yeah, he wants to look around. Lots of strange stuff has been happening." Link waved over his entire person, indicating the jinx that hadn't worn off yet. With that he turned and walked off.

Link trudged his way through the waist deep river to get to the opposite bank. Once there, he climbed up a small hill to get to the top of the meter high overlook next to the cliff-face that turned into adobe walls as it got close to the edge of the tall cliff Zelda had been pulled up.

There was a cove just above the overlook that Link didn't particularly like going inside. He went inside, however. There was a cobblestone path that gave way to a pool of glittering water. The pool was shrouded by a veil of green beads, the ceiling glowing a bright green, tingeing his skin the same hue as his tunic. Link stepped down to the large flat stone that was under only a millimeter of the glittering water.

Motes of light spilled upwards from the center of the pool. A female figure appeared from the light. She had her intensely pink hair pulled back into three tight pony tails. She had large brown eyes that had been covered in a ghastly shade of purple that stood out like a sore thumb from the woman's tan skin. Skin that was almost completely seen, a skimpy garment of vines kept the woman barely presentable, that and a pair of worn black leather boots that seemed to be caked in mud.

"Hello, Link. You haven't been here in a while."

Link prevented his right eye from twitching. Navi sat comfortably on Link's shoulder. "Yeah, been busy, saving the world you know."

"It seems that you've been wounded." She spread her arms out towards the hero. A spray of water hit his already drenched form. The water was both warm and misty, the burning from the wounds stopped as the furious red scars vaporized.

Link was gratefully for the nearly naked Great Fairy, only because she was able to cure wounds so easily.

"Before you go, we just want to know, have you noticed anything strange, Great Fairy?" Navi, unlike Link, saw barely a problem with the Great Fairy; she had become accustomed to them long before she had met the hero.

The woman paused and pondered the question. "The normal enemies seem to be a bit more antsy then the normal. Also, a strange man has been appearing everywhere. But other then that, no." And with that she disappeared in the way she had appeared.

Link sighed at the Great Fairy's answer. He knew the strange man was here, he was the one who had shot Zelda after all. He also knew about the enemies. Perhaps they were connected. It made some sense to Link, but not a lot.

Link turned around and stalked back out of the cave. He waded across the river and sat down net to the steps of the house. There was no point in going in, he wasn't in the mood for much of a lunch, or having people talk to him.

Instead he pulled out a little of the dried meat out of a pouch on his back and chewed on it thoughtfully. The jerky was irritatingly salty; his mouth ached for water, not having drunken any since the previous night. He choked the rest of the jerky down and pulled a skein of water off his back, carefully placed between two bottles, and noticed that the container was empty.

A small inspection proved a hole to be in the hide of the pouch. He wiggled his pinky finger into the hole and took note of the fact that it went all the way through and jerked it out. He gulped down some saliva, trying to soothe the dry throat. He got up and walked up the steps and knocked on the door.

Pamela opened the door for him, a curious look on her face. "Yes?"

"Link would like some water."

"Oh, of course. Come on in." Pamela stepped to the side to allow Link entrance.

Link strode into the house. Directly in front of him Zelda and Impa were seated on paisley green chairs. Zelda had moved her chair from the end of the purple table closer to the fire that crackled merrily in the fireplace that was centered in the wall. To his left was a staircase that led down into the basement where Pamela and her father slept.

Link sat down leaning against the wall directly to his right. He gratefully accepted the glass of cool water that Pamela gave him a moment later and nodded his thanks to her. Pamela returned to the third seat that had been added to the table for today. Link met Zelda's gaze just before chugging down the cold and crisp water.

Link shifted uncomfortably, noticing how the two younger women in the room had fixed their interest on him. He stood and placed the glass on the edge of the table.

"Thanks!" Navi chimed for him, albeit a bit too cheerfully. "Link'll be waiting outside for you."

Link went out the door, closed it firmly shut behind him and sat down. As he had grown up, being around the women his age had become increasingly uncomfortable for the hero. He had never appreciated how they doted on him, fixed all their attention on him, or became extraordinarily giddy in his presence. Link normally found himself taking all opportunities to avoid them when possible.

He reached behind and pulled the skein out, it showed years of wear and tear, the brown leather fading to white and becoming smooth. But it was very sturdy and useful for Link, and he had never been able to find a replacement for it. So he pulled out of a small pouch a crude needle, thick thread and a small piece of leather. It took his unaccustomed fingers several minutes to tack the filler thread into place, and the job look sloppy, but if it worked he didn't care.

Link walked over toe the river and tested to see if he really did need a replacement. He filled the pouch up and held it into the air. He rubbed the area he had sewn dry and watched for it to leak, after a second when it didn't do so, Link tied it up and shoved it back into place.

At that moment Zelda and Impa walked out of the house. Link trudged over to them. Zelda looked at him, eyebrows knitted and mouth frowning.

"Do you bring us to these places to have people tell us about you?"

Link shook his head solemnly, understanding what she meant. No doubt neither Romani nor Pamela had quieted about him. "No, unfortunately they do so despite his wishes. He brings you here because it's usually mid-day, and there's really nothing else he can show you around this time. It's been unfortunate that so far you've only met the girls."

Impa chuckled, "Quite a following you have, Link."


	16. Chapter 6 Beaches 3

Impa chuckled, "Quite a following you have, Link." 

Link grimaced, but otherwise pretended to ignore the comment. "Let's go back. It'll be mid-afternoon when we return."

Link turned around and walked towards the owl statue he had appeared in front of before. Angled beyond it was a tree. Using a similar chain and rope method he lashed a rope to the middle of the tree. He then pulled out the hookshot once more, and aimed for a tree a platform below him. Link grabbed the other end of the rope and took it with him as he went. He lashed the other end around the middle of the second tree and hookshot his way back up.

The Hero of Time tugged some pieces of durable cloth from a knothole in the tree. He handed one to Zelda and Impa, keeping one for himself. He slung the cloth over the rope, jumped off the side of the cliff while firmly holding the ends and slid down to the end, letting go before ramming into the tree.

"Just like that. Come on. There isn't any other way to get down."

Impa allowed Zelda to go in front of her. The princess peered over the edge, thinking about how much the water would hurt if she fell into it.

"Don't look down."

Zelda took a deep breath, and followed Link's actions. However, she closed her eyes. She jumped off the edge, letting the cloth zip her down the line. A terrifying long second later Zelda felt a pair of hands grab her and she let go, opening her eyes. Zelda pulled the clothe off the line. She noticed that she was inches from the tree. Link let go and motioned Zelda to back away.

Impa was down at their level a moment later. She had not closed her eyes and so dropped down like Link had before crashing into the tree, "That's a very interesting way of getting down. Got another trick?"

"Steeper fall." Link kicked a rock over revealing a hole with another stash of rope. He attached the second rope to a second loop in the chain that in the back. Then he jumped to the ground below, landing with a thud and a lot of pain in his knees. Link walked it off and tied the rope to the middle of the tree that the strange shadow had been in before.

Zelda repeated sliding down the rope as she had before. This time Zelda kept her eyes open and dropped down with good enough timing, but was a little high. She managed not to fall over and walked nearer to Link so that Impa could get down.

Link left the rope in position and the three walked back towards the second cliff they had gone up. Link pushed one of the rocks near the edge, revealing a passageway down the cliff. The bottom was a set of small worn steps. After a few minutes of twists and turns, they came to a dead end. Link manhandled the wall, and rolled it to the side. He jumped down, the level of the floor came to his waist it was a good three foot drop.

He turned and offered to help Zelda down, but she jumped, landing crouched like a cat. Impa followed suit. They walked back towards the iron gates Link had opened before. He left them open as they passed. When they came to Epona, who was pacing in the small corral, waiting for Link, her master pointed towards the fence that led to the other side of the field. The mare jumped the fence. When safely with gathered horses they mounted them and rode back towards Clock Town.

Zelda smiled at Link when they got back to town.

"Thanks, Link."

Link nodded and got off Epona. "Hey, Impa. Link wants to talk to Zelda for a minute. He'll bring her back to the inn."

"Alright, Link, I trust you." With that the Sheikah walked back into the inn.

Zelda peered curiously at the teenager. "What's up, Link?"

Link reformed the Great Fairy's Sword. "Here." Navi said as Link handed the blade to Zelda. "You can have it." She picked it up, the sword shortened considerably, became quite a bit thinner, and it was as light as a leaf to Zelda.

"This is the Great Fairy's Sword. Link doesn't need it, and he thought you could find a use for it. The blade uses magic to suit itself best for it's wielder, weight, length, magical ability."

"Magical ability?"

"Yeah, you can use it as an extension for your magical power if you have enough. Link's never been able to."

"Oh..." Zelda admired the blade. It was made by a great fairy, so it was bound to be tough, and it was beautiful. "But I haven't a way to sheath it."

"Pretend you're putting it away and let go of the hilt. It will disappear until you draw it. As a plus it will tell you the best way to use it when it's drawn. But, Link never listens."

Zelda put it to her waist and let go. The blade disappeared. "Thank you, Link."

Link nodded and walked Zelda back to the inn. Once she was in, he walked back out of town and played the tune that called the wings to him and whisked him towards the beach.

Zelda noticed Anju was waiting for someone when she walked in. She was holding a letter and watching the door anxiously.

"Oh, it seems he left." Anju said, something in her seemed to fall.

"Were you waiting for Link, Anju?"

The woman started when Zelda addressed her, "O-oh, yes. I was told to give him this letter."

"I'll take it to him. I doubt he's gone too far."

Zelda grabbed the letter and ran out of the inn. She turned left, Link wouldn't have gone anywhere but that entrance, since that's where the horses were.

She ran out to the field and stopped short when she saw that Epona was rider less and the other horses were long since gone. She was about to say something. Something moved behind her and covered her mouth. She felt hot breath against her ear, the voice sent chills down her spine and she shivered.

"Your hero's long since gone. Went away the moment he came out. Now sleep."

Zelda felt a tired feeling sink into her, eyes immediately closing against her will. She struggled against the hand, trying to pull it from her mouth, but it was useless. The princess simply didn't have the strength to move it, especially in her drowsy state. As a last effort she dropped the letter and reached for her waist to grab the sword, but at that moment she lost all consciousness.


	17. Chapter 7 Adventure

Hello, everyone. Enjoy as I bring you more of a LoZ Fan fiction that I hope is not cliché.

_**Adventure**_

* * *

_People have such mixed feelings about adventure. Personally, I feel that it would be quite a lot of fun to start a new adventure every now and again. It would be refreshing, a break from the normal. Some people that I watch feel the same way; they love the thrill of adventure. It gives them such great joy to go somewhere new, it excites them._

_Other people don't like the idea of an adventure. They think them too thrilling, or too dangerous. I don't believe that they understand that an adventure need not be full of fights or danger. Generally they are, but an adventure can be going somewhere you've never been to before._

* * *

Link paced back and forth on the beach. Something was nagging the back of his mind. All the minor obstacles that had been set up in his way: the gates to Ikana being closed after he had opened them earlier that day, all the ropes and chains being let loose from their position so he had had to replace them, the Bubbles coming out in the middle of the day, and finally that reincarnation of the Garo Master he had fought so long ago. He knew that they meant something. And Link knew that what they meant did not bode well.

But Zelda was safe. He had seen her to inside the Inn where Anju was. Sure Anju couldn't protect Zelda, but she could have raised an alarm and got Impa's attention. Zelda wasn't exactly strong, but she had magical power. Surely, the princess had to be safe.

So what was this feeling that was telling him the exact opposite? Why could he just not believe that Zelda was in fact, in safe hands at the inn? What was it?

He threw himself onto the sand on his back in frustration. He reached to his food pouch to gain a piece of dried meat and just slammed the hand onto the sand instead. He clenched the grains into a fist and released them. Link had found himself suddenly devoid of the hunger that had been gnawing at him a few seconds previous. His bad feeling had gotten to his stomach and made the thought of food disgusting.

There was a small sound behind him. His mind raced. It sound like someone shifting their weight from foot to foot; as if trying to get his attention. He waited three full heartbeats, and the sound was still there. Link turned to look at whomever it was while rising to his feet. A cold feeling had planted itself in the back of his mind and his insides.

Behind him stood a tall figure. About as tall as he was, Link guessed trying to make up for the slight incline in his judgments. The figure had no posture to speak of, and was dressed in a black robe, the exact same robe that archer had been wearing. The hood hid the face in its darkened depths. Link wasted no time of frivolities. He knew that this figure before him was evil, so he reached for the hilt of his sword.

"Oh good, you're not stupid after all." The voice was deep, definitely masculine, and was filled with such malice, spite, and sadism. Link could have sworn that the voice reminded him of something that he had heard before, but it was impossible to place.

The robes shifted, Link thought that an arm formed from the cloth covering the man. The sleeve ended only enough that Link caught the ends of very pale fingers from under the darkly shaded fabric. The hand held a sword; the hilt was hidden, hidden up the sleeve. The blade curved maliciously, gleaming sadistically in the sunlight.

Link drew the sword and pulled his shield off in one swift motion.

"Shields show weakness, cowardice even. They show that you are too scared to take your enemy's attacks. The holder of the Triforce of Courage, claimed to be the most courageous person that ever existed, uses a shield against a foe without one?" Following the short monologue was a burst of laughter that was not festal.

"Hey! Don't listen to him, Link. I bet he has a shield hidden under his robes."

"You're wise not to trust me, fairy. But you're also foolish. You've distracted him from me."

Indeed, for a brief moment Link had been distracted. He had been shocked out of watching the foe carefully, in a deadlock, when Navi had shouted to him. A split second later he had tuned her out, much like he had his opponent, only getting the basic gist of what she was saying. Link agreed with both what Navi had said, but what his foe had said as well. Navi needed to be quiet when he concentrated.

Link did not, however, understand the meaning of those words until his brain registered the fact that the robed man had been directly behind him when he said that. He had moved with such celerity that Link had not even noticed that the figure had actually moved. Then he registered the pain shooting up his arm. He hadn't noticed it before. The figure must have made his move while he had been distracted.

Link whirled around to face the figure.

"Truth be told, you'll need that shield to save your life, Link. Now come."

Link frowned and circled the figure before launching an attack on him. There was a clash of steel as the other parried the hero's attack.

Impa walked onto the scene. Wondering what was going on. The two in front of her behaved so irregularly. She recognized one but not the other.

"Anju, has Zelda not returned yet? Link said he would bring her into town several minutes ago." Anju was ghostly white, whiter then the clouds in the sky in the middle of the afternoon. She had a hand clamped firmly over her mouth, eyes shining with fear. The other person in the room was a man; he wore a white shirt and a pair of shorts. He had a tall red cap on his head and red sandals. He was holding a letter in front of Anju.

"What's going on, Anju?"

"Here, ma'am," The man said holding the letter out to Impa, "You might want to read this. It will explain everything, sort of."

Impa snatched the paper.

_Link,_

_I have captured your princess. You see, I knew both you and her would fall for my clever traps, and you would leave when she tried to deliver this to you out of town. You're so foolish, Link._

Following that were a set of instructions. Impa performed them perfectly, but could not discern their meaning.

_If you want to rescue dear princess Zelda, I suggest you find Epona and follow my directions to the letter. Please, by all means, try and save her._

There was no signature attached to the letter. Impa frowned, reading over the directions once again. But they made as much sense to her as the reason for the royal family's betrayal of her tribe so long ago. There did not seem to be any logic behind them, at least, none that she could discern.

"Where did this come from?"

"I was walking outside of the Eastern exit to grab a breath of fresh air where it was quite and I noticed this letter lying on the ground. So I picked it up and noticed that it was the same letter I had given to Miss. Anju before. I brought it back here, but I dropped it and caught a glimpse of the first line by accident. So I rushed back here to show you all."

"Zelda did return here before then?"

"Y-yes. When you told me that Link would escort Zelda to the Inn, I thought that maybe he would come in and I could give him the letter. But he didn't. Zelda noticed and offered to take the letter to Link, she said he couldn't be too far and she'd be alright. I didn't so much as get to say another word before she was out the door, letter in hand."

Impa turned towards the man, "Do you know who gave you this letter?"

"Actually yes. Normally people just leave their letters in the mailbox for me to pick up, but he came directly up to me, said I was to deliver it to Link immediately. He was a tall fellow, couldn't see anything past the hood he had on...very frightening too. I figured that the easiest way to deliver it to Link would be to give to Anju or Kafei, they see him the most out of anyone in Clock Town."

"The Eastern exit you said?"

"Yes..."

Impa placed the letter carefully on the counter and hurried out the door. She turned to her left and continued to run out the exit. Once outside she noticed a figure to her right. It was leaning against the defending wall of Clock Town. A hood was pulled low over the face, but she could see a huge nose. But that was all. She noticed that he was very tall and seemed to match the mailman's description.

"What have you done with the Princess?" Impa felt no fear from looking at the individual. Perhaps the mailman was faint hearted or exaggerating.

"Oh, you must be Impa then. He did say that you might try and rescue Zelda after reading the letter. I'm afraid I've had nothing to do with her, yet." His voice was deep, but raspy, old.

"Then where is she?"

"Look over there, but don't expect to get her back." Zelda lay unconscious on the ground. Her body was crumpled in a heap, but Impa could just make out the motion of her breathing. Impa raised a fist at the man. She may have been getting old, but she could still fight. Impa thought that maybe if she beat him, he would return the princess. "Now, now, that won't do. But if you must fight, I'll entertain you."

The swords clashed as the waves beat against the shore. Salt water sprayed against Link's feet as he backed away from his foe to get a better idea for his next move. However, nothing of the sort occurred.

A fresh onslaught of moves came down mercilessly upon the hero. He had barely enough time to bring up both his sword and his shield to block the attacks. Link jumped to the side and slashed his sword at the figure.

The robed figure dodged the blow, only his raiment being torn in the attack. Link bashed him with his shield, a move the man had not been expecting. He stumbled backwards as he tried to regain his balance. Link stabbed the figure. The point of his sword collided with something hard and slid off to the side, dragging the robes along with it.

So he _did_ have a shield under his robes. He had figured as much. Link took a moment to pant as his foe regained his footing, readying himself for offense or defense. He scrutinized his opponent, looking for signs of weakness.

Link had sworn that he had connected a few good blows with the figure; however, no blood tainted the shoreline, no crimson made the robe glisten. He wondered what had happened to his hits. He had _felt_ his blade dig into flesh.

Although his opponent showed no sign of the arduous fight that was going on its third minute, Link did. Blood traced from a gash on his cheek. The outer part of the white shirt that covered his forearm was stained red and blood fell down the extremity from a deeper wound. Other various wounds had ravaged his body. He was not out of the fight yet, but it was growing harder to ignore the pain. But Link had thought he had injured his opponent just as much.

"What's the matter, Link? Tired?"

Link did not respond to the question, it would only distract him. And this time, he didn't think that his opponent would be nice enough to hit him with the pommel of his sword. Link instead opted to raise his sword towards the fiend, readying to strike once again.

"If that's how you feel."

They flew at each other. Their swords clashed. Both of them had the same idea at the same time: use their shields to knock the other backwards.

The two were caught in a dead lock until the cloaked fighter gently stepped to the side and pulled his sword away. Link lost his balance and flew forwards. He tried to regain his balance but felt something hit the back of his head. Link's body hit the sand, waves lapping his hand and fallen shield. His sword slid along the sand, burying its tip into the beach. Red blood spilled down the shore into the salt water.

"You should have been stronger, Link. You're too weak to protect Zelda." The victor said and turned around. He walked directly into the shortening shadows of the cliff and disappeared.


	18. Chapter 7 Adventure 2

At the eastern exit of the town, a roan horse stopped short, being caught dead in its tracks. It's rider jumped lightly to the ground. She had deep orange hair that was cropped unusually short. Her attire was similar to that of a boy's and of dark shades. She walked over to a body lying on the ground. 

"Aeon! Come look at this!" She shouted behind her as she knelt next to the figure.

Another girl jumped off the horse. She hurried over to the other girl. She had long black hair and dark eyes. "What is it, Phlo?"

She stopped short and gasped, looking at what had called Phlo over. It was Impa. Her gray hair was disheveled, half of it out of the normally orderly ponytail. Burns marred her skin, black spots coated her armor.

"Oh my...Is she...?"

"Yeah, she's alive." Phlo turned the woman onto her back. The red mark on her chest armor, an eye with a teardrop, caught the young woman's attention. "She's a Sheikah isn't she...from Hyrule?"

"You don't think that she's one of the royal guards...do you?"

"Only one way to find out...help me out, would you?" Phlo started to gingerly lift Impa up and Aeon went to the elder woman's other side. They lifted her up between them. They slowly made their way towards the entrance and into the town.

Phlo muttered, more towards herself then to Aeon, "Probably should go to the Inn. If they were still here, they'd be there." People stared at the two strangers as they carried the princess's guard into town. There were faint mutterings, but the two could not make them out. Phlo used her foot to kick the door in a knocking fashion.

Anju opened the door a moment later. She gasped at the sight of Impa and stood to the side. "What happened to her?" She shut the door behind them. "Put her there..." Anju said as she pointed to the bench that line one of the walls in the lobby.

The two girls placed the older woman down. A moment later her eyes snapped open.

"The princess..." Impa hissed. Her arms ached and burned. Agony embraced her every second of her waking. "They have the princess..."

"So you _are_ guarding the royal family." The tanner and taller of the two newcomers said. "It's alright. Link will save her once we tell him." She tried to reassure her.

With that statement Impa nodded and passed out again.

A minute later the king and queen came down the stairs.

"We heard Impa before," the king said as he turned from coming down the stairs. He stopped cold when he saw Impa in her current state. "My word, what happened?"

The queen turned and stopped short at the sight of the Sheikah as well.

"I don't really know what happened, she was pretty beat up when we found her. She was just outside the eastern exit. It seems that...someone captured the princess and beat her up. That's what I guess from what she said when she awoke before collapsing again."

"Someone...took...Zelda?" The queen asked silently.

Anju nodded, "Yes. When they came back to the inn, Zelda saw me holding this letter for Link. He hadn't come in directly, and probably just left town. Zelda offered to take it out to him and she never returned. Then Impa went to see what was happening after reading the letter and...well..." Anju waved hopelessly at the royal guard.

"May I see the letter?"

Anju handed him the piece of parchment. The king took a long look at it and shook his head. "Are we sure that Link didn't cause all this?"

"No, he couldn't have. Link's quiet, but he's not malicious. He can't even use fire spells, at all." Phlo said immediately. Although she had to admit to herself, as she skimmed through the letter, the handwriting was very similar to Link's, but it was different. The words titled to the left more, all angles had been sharpened, and every letter had been forged with meticulous precision.

At that moment the door opened. All attention was fixed on the wooden frame as the entrance was revealed. Link staggered in. One eye was closed in pain; his left arm was holding his right shoulder as he made his way into Stock Pot.

His bloodied clothes were beginning to dry. He only managed to grunt from the effort walking required. Link closed the door and staggered forward to the desk. He propped himself against the wooden furniture and panted.

When he had managed to drag himself up off the beach after his opponent had left, he had pondered over the meaning of his last sentence. He was drained, multiple wounds screaming as he had walked over to lean on the cliff. His head throbbed; his foe had hit him with the blunt end of his sword to stop the fight cold. He had blacked out for a moment before coming to. Link had pulled out his ocarina and played the song that had brought him to an owl statue in Clock Town. It had taken several minutes to barely walk to the Inn in his condition.

"Is Zelda safe?" Navi asked.

"Link, are you alright?"

"Is Zelda safe?" Navi repeated again. That was the only response Link had wanted her to send. There was no feasible way that Link could ask her to give the affirmative without having his reasoning ability questioned. Having Navi reply in the obvious negative would require him to sit and have them waste time seeking medical attention for him. Right now he didn't think that he would have to the strength to force his will if they tried to make him sit. Both were something that the hero wanted to avoid for the moment.

"No. Someone..."

"Kidnapped her." Navi finished for the king. "Link figured as much after his last fight." Link's gaze caught sight of the paper the king held, "What's that?"

"A letter."

"To whom?"

"You." The king said and placed the letter in front of the injured man. "It doesn't make any sense."

Link glanced over the words. He noted that the handwriting was oddly similar, just like the foe's moves had been, to his own. Then he noticed the directions. His eyebrows twitched. That was the sign language he had used as a child in the Kokiri forest before Navi had shown up. The only people that understood it were the Kokiri. How did this person know?

He performed the first set of actions. A wide horizontal arc created by his right hand directed in a general southern direction, which was followed by the clenching of his fist and then the arm being pumped once, and then his hand moved from left to right in a large arc above his head, five fingers splayed: _Travel to the south, one set of five days._ That was pretty simple. He was directing Link to head towards Greater Termina, taking the forest path.

The next set of actions proved to be more ambiguous. He was told to tap his right collarbone three times and then a quick cutting motion from his left shoulder to right hip. He placed his hand out in front of him and made a fist seven times. The part up to the fist being formed in front of him could either mean "By yourself" or "No more". The second part was obviously "Fight seven." But seven what, exactly? Link wondered.

He just assumed that the message so far was, "Travel to the south, one day. By yourself, fight seven."

The third and last set finished off the awkward directions. His palm faced outwards, arm parallel to the ground. Link was then instructed to spread both hands out palms up, flip the palms upside down and then make a fist with both hands. Next, a wave was cast down towards the ground, parallel to his body and then immediately directed towards himself. Lastly he was instructed to wiggle the five fingers on his left hand once. The first part could either mean "Hold on," or "With one exception." The next part meant "You'll see." The part after that was "wait patiently" or "wait for me." The only meaning Link could come up with for the last part was "five."

Link tried to construe a meaning for the coded message. "Travel to the south, one set of five days. By yourself, fight seven. With one exception, you'll see, wait patiently at the fifth or for the fifth." It took a minute for his blood-deprived brain to wrap the entire message up with the last sentence. He had to follow the directions to the letter. He could only hope that he was getting their meaning right.

In any case, Link felt it best to place the letter into a pouch.

"Did you understand that?"

Link nodded, "Yes. That was the sign language he used when he was kid. Only the other children he grew up with know that."

"So it could be one of them?"

"Doubtfully. Look, Link has to go if he wants to help Zelda. He's got five days to get there, and it's a long trip." With that Link stumbled out of the door. He wandered to the other side of the town to garner supplies for his journey, along with several restorative items.

After he was done he left town, feeling much rejuvenated after consuming a blue colored potion. His entire wallet was filled with rupees; he was incapable of carrying any more.

Link called Epona to him with his ocarina. He jumped onto her back and pressed the mare towards the south. It would normally take him seven days to get to Termina. He'd have to travel all night to get there in time.


	19. Chapter 8 Temples

_**Temples**_

_Temples are places of sacred meaning. They hold great psychological, religious, or personal value to the people that visit them, guard them._

_And yet they fall so easily and so quickly into ruin. Monsters inhabit their halls, take the meaning from them. They ruin them, turn them into sacred grounds of death. The Hero of Time has always served the purpose of reclaiming those temples, destroy the evil inhabiting them, making them sacred once again. He has always restored their purpose and, by it, the hope of the people that visit and guard them. The Hero of Time is merely his title, his purpose is not to manipulate time or save the princess, but restore hope._

* * *

Four days later Link patted the back of Epona's neck. The mare slowed from her gallop to a stop, right next to a spring. The horse eyed the water, stamping her legs impatiently. Link dropped from her back and used a hand to guide her towards the spring. He leaned against a tree and refilled his water skein before dulling the pain in his parched throat. Epona drank the water gratefully and when she had had her fill of the water, moved onto the grass to graze.

The young hero looked up at the sky. He pulled out some dried meat and chewed on it. Link had been traveling non-stop for the past twenty-four hours. He knew Epona could use a small rest, as could he. A hand reached up, pulling the cap from off his head and five calloused fingers scratched vigorously at the mess of blonde hair.

He swallowed the rest of the dried meat and downed the rest of the water he had put into the skein. Link closed his eyes to rest and think for a while.

When those blue eyes once more greeted the world, the bright blue afternoon sky had given its colors to the pale tints of the morning atmosphere. He shook his head, he had meant to merely blink his eyes to try and rid them of tire.

Link stood, pulled out more of the jerky, refilled his water skein, downed another half of it, refilled it again, and looked for Epona. She was grazing a few meters distant, but he whistled for her and she trotted over to him.

Link mounted the mare and dug his knees lightly into her sides. Epona started and galloped away from the spring and back onto the main road.

Link frowned in annoyance at himself. He had wasted far too much time sleeping already. He was barely two thirds of the way to Greater Termina and had only what daylight was left to him to get there.

There would be no more resting for him. He'd have to tax Epona, but perhaps he could manage to get there before the sun fully set. He would have to stray from the main path, which wound and snaked around the forest. Cutting through the woods would take far less time, but the going would be rougher and he would be lost easier. However, in the past seven years he had strengthened his navigational skills and now he knew without thinking what the four cardinal directions where. Link knew the path would require him to go in a slightly southwestern direction, and that was enough.

Link guided the running Epona off the path and into the woods. Link bent low on Epona's back to be less of a hindrance to the mare as the higher branches would catch on his tunic. Tangled brush slowed her progress, but only by a fraction. The mare cut a deep gouge through the woods as they sped through.

By midday they came through the woods and came back to the main road. Link nodded to himself and once more pushed Epona through the woods, by this point they had covered most of the distance left to them. By when the sun was almost beginning to set they came back to the main path as the woods gave way to a huge clearing.

To Link's right, the east, was a rock face. It was actually the side of an extremely tall mountain in a range. On the base of the mountain that cut the deepest into the clearing a town was built. It sprawled, a mile and a half at it's widest, from the root of the range. Scaling the side of the mountain was a series of large stone balconies and a tower, a hundred floors high. This was the castle of Greater Termina.

Link stood on the lip of a hill that sloped down into the valley of the clearing. There was a clear horizon line to the south, the edge was tainted the blue of the ocean, Link knew there was a town built there. There were no less then ten villages in Greater Termina; the country was no smaller then fifty miles from east to west and forty miles north to south. There was a large lake to the west, a large river that flowed from the north and fed the lake and flowed to the ocean. A vast forest shrouded the edges of the lake and consumed half the territory of Greater Termina.

He guided Epona down the slope and followed the fairly straightforward dirt path that would eventually bring him to a village that had been raised to greet foreigners. From it derived a path that branched off towards all parts of Greater Termina.

At the town gates Link dismounted the mare. He watched as she left to graze in the fields. Link walked through the gates and nodded politely at the guards. They smiled at Link and let him pass.

Link rubbed one of his eyes. Navi tried to talk to him, "Hey, it seems as though we made it in time." She had been very quiet for the past five days, only asking Link stuff when it was really important. The fairy had wanted to leave him to think and rush around. She was afraid distracting him from his task would delay him.

Link nodded. "Yeah. I guess that guy's watching the entrance to this town to wait for me and see if I make it or not. There's no where else I would go, really, after arriving, and I get the feeling he knows that."

"You don't think he start another fight with you would he?" Navi asked, flitting back and forth above Link's head trying to see if she could spot him.

"I don't get the feeling that he would." Link shoved his hands into his pockets and ambled around the town, trying to remember what this place was like and where he could possibly stay for the night.

Elsewhere in the town, not too far away from the Hero of Time, a young girl skipped down the cobblestone paths that wound around town. She was very late for dinner, her father was going to be very angry at her. The girl was about to turn onto the road that would lead her towards the main path that would take her home eventually when she saw someone.

That someone wore a dark hood. He seemed to melt into the shadows at his back. She shivered, stopping in her path. Her blue eyes were fixed on the man, even though she tried to run from him and towards home. The man scared her, even more so when he turned a gaze on her that was of an odd red coloration.

"Is something bothering you?" He asked her. The voice alone was enough to make her yelp subconsciously.

"N-n-no, m-mister." The girl stuttered as she tried vainly to back away from him. Instead of the distance being increased, it decreased as he walked towards her.

Something silver dropped from his sleeve, attached to it was an emerald pendant in the shape of a flower. He knelt next to the girl and lifted one of her hands, firmly placing the necklace in the palm. The stranger stood and walked off around the corner the girl had just taken.

The girl gazed at the accessory, and smiled. It was very beautiful, the gemstone glowed in an oddly beautiful way that captivated her. She didn't know why the man had given it to her, but she liked the gift. Maybe she hadn't needed to fear him after all.

She held it in her hands and began to run off to get back home once more. She stopped as three very large, very muscular, and very drunk men staggered into the exit of the path, cutting her off. The girl stepped to the side, trying to hide against the wall to let them pass without bothering her.

"Hey, wuzzat?" One man asked, lifting an unstable finger to point at the girl while using the other hand to smack one of his friends' arms.

The other turned his head and blinked many times, "'S a girlie, man. No need t'be botherin' 'er."

"No, nah that..." the first man said trying to point at the necklace, "That. 'S very shiny."

"Ohhh." The other two said at the same time spotting the necklace. The eerie green glow that surrounded the pendant. They all lurched and stumbled towards the girl. She pressed herself back against the wall, trying to flatten herself into invisibility.

"Hey, girlie...give us that thing."

"N-no." She said, blue eyes filled with fear. She tried to press father back against the wall but found that it had no more give. She was too paralyzed to run from them.

"Hey!" A feminine voice shouted from the end of the alleyway. All attention fixed on the source of the voice. "Leave her alone."

Link had just walked onto the scene. His hand was at the ready by his side, at an instant's moment he was ready to pull out his sword to knock the big men out with the hilt of the weapon. He could smell their intoxication from his position.

The girl ran towards the hero, hiding behind his leg. She was about level with his waist. The men blinked and nodded, taking in the fact that Link had so many weapons on him.

"Yeah, man. Just leavin'." Together they stumbled down and around the bend.

"Thanks, mister!" The girl said with a big smile on her face. She held the necklace in her hands, the pendant was hidden.

Link nodded at her and Navi said, "You're welcome." Link's eyebrows furrowed down at the girl with genuine concern in his eyes as he looked around, "Shouldn't you be home by now? Where are your parents?"

"Oh, Gavin said I should be back by now." She frowned as she continued, "He's probably going to be mad at me when I get back."

"Let Link escort you back then, so that you don't get delayed anymore."

"Okay! Your name's Link then?" Link nodded, "Follow me!" She said with a smile on her face. She took Link's fingers and dragged him along.

Link smiled to himself before wiping the expression off his face. In appearances and personality she reminded Link quite a lot of one of the Kokiri he used to know. In a few minutes they were at a door. The girl opened the door and waved Link inside.

He walked across the threshold of the doorframe and closed the door behind himself. He examined the first room. A table was set in the center, a fireplace burned cheerfully in the middle of the left wall. There was a staircase in the back that led towards the second floor and there were three doors against the back wall. A man stood up the moment the two of them entered.

The man was tall, taller then Link. He was trim and muscular. The only wrinkles on his face were around his stern and annoyed dark eyes. He wore a dark green shirt and beige pants. His hair was cropped short and a blonde shade.

"Ramsay, You were supposed to be back before sunset. What has kept you?"

"Sorry, Gavin. I ran into this man who had this really neat juggling trick, when I realized the time, it was already late."

Gavin sighed and walked towards the girl. "And is this the man?" He looked directly at Link.

"No. When I was running back some men tried to bother me, but he scared them away."

Gavin held his hand out to Link; the hero took the hand and shook it. Navi's gaze flittered between the man and her ward. Their faces were similar, but the man's was older and had a more serious appearance. Their hair was exactly the same, so was the shape of their eyes. Except Gavin's eyes were a dark brown while Link's were blue. Both were built along the same lines, but Gavin was much more muscular, due to the amount of years he had on Link.

"What's your name, son?"

"His name's Link. I'm Navi." Navi said, introducing them both. Gavin visibly reacted to Link's name. Although he quickly pushed the shock away from his mind and spotted Navi for the first time. "He says he'd ask for your name just to be polite, but he already knows it's Gavin."

Link frowned decidedly and glowered at the fairy. The young man was torn between two decisions about his seven-year companion. Either she was really dumb and couldn't tell between what he was thinking and what he wanted said. Or, the more likely option since Navi had proven she could do so, that the fairy just liked to annoy him by doing such things.


	20. Chapter 8 Temples 2

Link frowned decidedly and glowered at the fairy. The young man was torn between two decisions about his seven-year companion. Either she was really dumb and couldn't tell between what he was thinking and what he wanted said. Or, the more likely option since Navi had proven she could do so, that the fairy just liked to annoy him by doing such things. 

The old man laughed at Link and Navi. "Does she do all the speaking for you?"

Link nodded, "Link's mute. I communicate his thoughts to people for him."

"Well alright. I'm used to stranger things. Anyways, why don't you eat with us, as a way of saying thanks for helping Ramsay out."

"Sure. Link would like to know if you know of an inn in town that he could stay at for the night."

"I'll let you stay here. All the inns are filled up for the night anyway."

"Thanks."

"Why don't you get washed up, Ramsay will show you to the washroom." The girl nodded, and shifted the necklace to be held in the one hand. Gavin noticed the flash of silver. "Ramsay, where did you get that?"

"A man gave it to me. He was really tall and wore a black cloak and a hood that hid his face. He was awfully scary, but he was nice too."

Link's eyebrows furrowed and he knelt down next to the girl. "Could Link see that necklace?" The girl put it in Link's out stretched hand. Link flipped his hand over so that palm was down at the same time catching the chain on his fingertips while standing up.

Link raised his arm and scrutinized the emerald stone. The pendant was the shape of a flower. It took him a second to recognize it. The flower was a Deku Seedling, a flower native only to the Lost Woods. The flower had been Saria's favorite, was probably still her favorite. However, Link had never liked them, unable to see the allure they had for all the other Kokiri in the forest. This made him frown.

Was the necklace a clue for him, or just something the stranger had given the girl? Either way Link got the feeling that it portended something bad for Ramsay if she were to keep it.

"You recognize the guy from that description?"

Link nodded and twisted his hand so that the pendant flipped into his open palm; he closed the hand into a fist. "Yes. That man kidnapped someone from Termina. Link's been following him to try and rescue the person. Link thinks that it would be best if he kept it."

"Alright then. Ramsay, show Link to the washroom. I'll put dinner on the table."

"Sure." The girl said half-heartedly. She pouted as she saw Link put the necklace into his pocket. She showed walked towards one of the three doors in the back and let Link in. It was a small room with a water pump and a small bowl next to it. Link allowed the girl to wash her hands and face first. When she was out he closed the door.

Link removed the gauntlets from his forearms and hands. The skin underneath was pale in comparison to the skin on his fingers. Not only from a lack of sun, but also his fingers were brown with dirt. He placed the leather arm guards into one of the pouches attached to his belt in the back. He then washed the fingers and cleared the dirt from his face. He emptied the bowl, which was now brown with dirt, and exited the room.

When he walked out both residents of the house stared at him curiously. Their main focal point of interest was the mark on the back of his left hand. The mark was what seemed to be an old brand or scab of some sort. It had three small equilateral triangles that formed one larger equilateral triangle with a relatively upside down triangular blank in the center.

"So you're from Hyrule, are you?"

Link nodded. He didn't believe he'd be able to get away with lying about that, not with the mark of the Triforce so visible. However, a better question he wanted asked was why Gavin knew. Link quickly sent the thought to Navi for her not to ask that, he'd question it later, if at all.

"Take a seat then, but be polite and stow the gear and the hat."

Link shrugged, unbuckling the baldric that held everything onto his back. He set the shield gently onto the wooden floor. The sides of four bottles, the second sheath, the rest of his quiver, main scabbard, and bow could be seen from their position. The four bottles were filled with green, red, or blue liquids. The green head covering fell gently in a perpendicular angle to the leather strap.

Link took a seat in the empty chair.

"Are you a mercenary?" Gavin asked, spooning up some soup from the bowl in front of him.

Link shook his head and then chewed on some bread.

"Then why do you have all of those weapons?"

Link paused thoughtfully then Navi responded. "Link's an adventurer. He's tracking the man because person he kidnapped is someone Link knew."

After dinner the girl was sent directly to bed. Gavin asked Link to stay in the room while he picked up the plates.

"So, do all boys in Hyrule have to get the Triforce burned into the back of their hands now?"

"Oh...no they-" Navi stopped as Link cut her short, making sure she replied in the fashion he wanted her to. Then the fairy continued, "don't. Just the ones that adventure a lot."

"And how many of them are in Hyrule?" There was a long pause as Link tried to come up with a decent, believable number that wasn't just one. Gavin cut his thinking short, "Just you then, huh?"

Link nodded and shrugged it off.

"How's Hyrule doing these days?"

Link shrugged, he hadn't been in Hyrule for many years now. He didn't know for sure, but he knew not rescuing Zelda would put in Hyrule in poor sorry shape. "How come you're so interested in Hyrule?"

"Oh." Gavin said as he sat down in one of the chairs. He fixed his gaze at Link. "I lived in Hyrule about fifteen years ago. At that time the country was in fairly sorry shape, riots and mutineers almost everywhere, it was almost constant civil war. It started after the Royal family betrayed the Sheikah tribe.

"I was friends with who would become King Harkin. Twenty years ago we organized a force to stop the rebellion and the chaos. The plan was for Harkin to become king after the current king died. The current king was very old, a nice man, but infirm and couldn't handle the job he also had no heirs. Harkin was descendant from an older royal line and a good man. It escalated for three years, at its climax the rebels burned the castle down and the current king was killed. A few Sheikah, including the main royal guard and founder of Kakariko, helped us out and we stopped them. Two years later I left Hyrule a little bit after the new king was accepted."

"Why did you leave?" Navi asked.

"Have you ever heard of the Kokiri forest, boy?" Link nodded smiling, he didn't just know about the forest, he had lived there. At that Gavin continued, "During the fire I feared for my wife and young child. I told her to go to the Kokiri Forest to seek refuge until I came in got her. After the fire had been put out I went to look for her, and found out she had been killed. I was sure some ill-fate had befell my son so I went back to the castle. After two years I couldn't stand it anymore, so I left." Gavin smiled, "You know, boy, if he had grown up, I'm sure he'd look a lot like you."

"What about the girl...?"

"She was an orphan who's parents were killed about five years ago. I've been taking care of her."

Link nodded. "Link's been riding for a long while, and he needs to leave early in the morning. He'd like to rest."

Gavin nodded and opened up another door in the back of the house, it was to the right of the washroom. The room beyond was of tiny dimensions. It had a neatly made bed, vanity, and dresser. There was a window that showed the edges of the town and the fields beyond on the back wall.

Link picked up his gear and hat. He walked into the room and placed it down on the floor. The hero closed the door and peered at the window. He placed his hands against the bottom and forced the glass covering upwards to open the room to the outside. He placed two hands against the ledge and looked at the distance from the sill to the ground below. Then he pulled himself out and landed on the ground.

Link inspected the area and, feeling secure in the fact that his foe was watching him from the shadows, pulled out the necklace. Link placed it on his fingers palm up. He let the piece of jewelry slide from his hand onto the ground. Then he placed his thumb between his ring and middle fingers. Next he carefully formed a fist by curling the fingers, starting with the smallest digit, and sliding the thumb to the side of his hand. That was his sign for "Keep it."

He was sure that the necklace was a clue for him. A hint as to where to go next to save Zelda. Although he wondered if it was a trap, or if this new enemy was stupid or arrogant.

Link then jumped back up the wall, grabbed onto the sill and pulled himself into the guest bedroom. He closed the window, kicked his boots off, stashed his belt with his shield, and climbed into the bed. Link felt as though the bed was swallowing him, since he unused to the luxury of a mattress to sleep on or sheets as well for that matter.

Seconds later the necklace was absorbed into the shadows of the area and dissipated.

* * *

Deeper into the inside of Greater Termina the princess of Hyrule slept. She had been out of touch with the world for the past five days, not even stirring from her dreams. Her unconscious body had been placed on a small piece of padding.

Her eyes opened slowly, painfully. Her head throbbed, vision blurred, stomach churned. She sat up and blinked rapidly, trying to clear her vision. Zelda's pupil's dilated to make up for the lack of lighting. The crown princess stood slowly, unsure of her footing and balance.

"So you're finally awake, young one." A man said. Flames flickered to life in nests of twigs in the bowels of torches. They dimly lit the room, and cast orange light onto the man. He was tall and had broad shoulders. He wore a black cloak and a hood. The hood covered his face, aside from a large nose. Zelda stared down the man defiantly. His voice wasn't the same as the person that had captured her; it was lower, rougher.

"Who are you? Why have you brought me here?"

"My name, child, is Amageten. I have brought you here because of this." He lifted his right arm. The black sleeves fell backwards from his wizened robust hand. That hand held a crystal that was diminutive in the extremity.

The crystal glowed from its core and was twenty different pastel colorations at the same time. Zelda eyed it with trepidation.

"What is that?"

"This is Lei's Crystal, Zelda. And it will be the end of you."


	21. Chapter 9 Families

_**Families**_

_Families are an odd experience. I know myself because I have a family of sorts with my three sisters. We get along very well. Other families do not get along quite so well. However, having a family is necessary to growing up._

_The Hero of Time never had a proper family. The Kokiri he grew up with eschewed him from their normal activities after a while because he was different from them. They never considered him family, because that was not a real word to the Kokiri. They are children and thus never grow up. However, the Hero of Time did, and he lacked experience in family that has hindered him many times in common society._

_However, he continues on with life despite that inadequacy. Which is part of the reason why he fascinates me, I have never seen anyone else that could ever match his determination._

* * *

Link woke up early the next morning before the sun was up. He shoved the light cotton sheets away from his body and sat up in the bed with some difficulty. The soft mattress caved in from its occupant. Although he had had a bed when he was younger in the Kokiri forest, it was not this soft, and it had been a great deal of years since he had slept in a proper bed. The give the mattress provided him to sleep with made it difficult to move.

The hero moved towards the side of the bed to sit and then stand up. However, he overcompensated for the give in the mattress and propelled himself off the edge, and onto the floor. There was a dull thud as Link made contact with the firmer wooden boards. He groaned and stood up.

Link decided against sitting on the bed to put on his boots and replaced the shoes onto his feet while on the floor. He stood up and looked around the room. He made his way over to the vanity, where he had placed his gear the night before. However, it was not there.

Link opened the door as quietly as he could and scrutinized the main room, there was nothing there that hadn't been there the night before. The hero frowned and looked in the washroom, not finding the missing items in there either. His hand paused over the third door in the main room. He might be poking his head into places it didn't belong, but he felt exposed without his sword readily available. He reached down and grabbed the handle, twisted it, and found that it was locked.

Link rubbed the back of his left hand, annoyed that he couldn't even find his gauntlets to cover up the triforce. For some reason, having the hand bare made him uncomfortable. The mark had appeared when he was fifteen, after he had gotten his first pair of gauntlets. So, he shoved his hand into his pocket until he could find his things.

The young man climbed up the stairs and took in both sides of the narrow corridor. There were two doors, and a few windows. The two doors were bedrooms, he reasoned, and it would be best if he didn't try to enter them. Link inspected the corridor and the spaces outside of the windows. No sign of his shield, sword, belt, or hat was found.

"Gee, I wonder what could have happened to your shield and things?" Navi wondered aloud. The fairy stayed near to Link, occasionally resting on his tangled blonde hair.

"I dunno." Link replied in his mind as he stormed very quietly down the stairs. Then the hero paced around the main room, trying to figure out where his weaponry could have gone.

After sunrise Gavin came down the stairs. Link looked sharply at him.

"Do you know where my shield went?"

"Yes." He said as he chuckled, "My apologies, but I didn't feel safe sleeping with those hanging around unsecured. You're still a stranger here, despite how trustworthy you look." With that he pulled a key out of his pocket and unlocked the third room. It was filled with cleaning items and other various sundry odds and ends. Stowed on a shelf was everything Link had put next to the vanity the previous night.

Gavin took the gear and handed it to Link. Link smiled and took his things. He set the shield back on the floor and replaced his belt. Then he refastened the baldric around his torso. Link was relieved to feel the reassuring weight of his "adventure kit" back on his back. Link took out his gauntlets and replaced them over his hands.

"Why don't you stay for breakfast, Link?"

Link shook his head, "Link needs to go. He's been here too long." With that he walked out of the house, but not before thanking Gavin for his kindness. Then the hero exited the town to find Epona and continue his adventure.

Link pulled out his ocarina and played a song he knew the mare would come for, as he couldn't see her. Sure enough, a second later he heard Epona's familiar whinny as she galloped towards him. Link put the musical instrument back into a pocket in his tunic and mounted Epona when she was near.

The Hero of Time pushed Epona around the town and rode her off the western path to make best speed towards the forest, or rather the town near it. It would take many hours at a normal speed, and Link hoped to cut the time down by running in a crow's line to the town and by taxing Epona. He felt bad for doing this to her, but she was more then used to it by now, and she could relax in the hours of reprieve he gave her by completing tasks in town. Link made a mental note to buy carrots to feed Epona with as a token of thanks.

By the time they reached the edges of the forest it was near noon. Link jumped off Epona and patted her hindquarters, letting her run off into the field to graze. He turned and walked through the stone archway that covered the path that cut into the forest. In a few minutes he strode into the village. There were a few people milling about the center of the town, others bustled from place to place to buy the things they needed.

Link scrutinized the buildings and the people for suspicious behavior. Finding the area devoid off peculiar activity he went over to the message board of the town. There were some notices nailed to the wooden board that leaned against the mayor's office. He skimmed through them and shook his head. There were sales, auctions, notices for items found, ads for jobs posted, but nothing that could have been a clue for him.

"Hey, do you really think you needed to come here?"

At this Link nodded and perambulated the town, he was eager to find clues that the cloaked man might have left for him.

He found one an hour later when he heard screaming from the town center. Link ran through the streets and came to source of his attraction. A person was sprawled on the cobblestone, dead. Blood poured from a large wound in the throat. A swift inspection showed him the cause of the commotion.

An entity of shadow stood in front of the crowd. The form was vaguely masculine and it seemed to be carrying a staff of sorts. The apparition was tall and thin. Link furrowed his eyebrows at the shadow's familiarity. Then he recognized it and registered irritation at the placement.

The thing twirled its staff around in miniature circles towards a shocked bystander. A black swirling vortex appeared at the end and grew before collapsing. It took the form of a black wolf that sped towards the terrified victim. Its paws propelled it from the ground as it leapt towards the person's throat.

Link reached into his pocket and pulled out a dagger. Without taking proper time to aim, he threw the weapon. It hit home and hafted itself into the side of the head of the wolf. The summoning part was new, but Link recognized both creatures. The summoned wolf disappeared and the dagger clattered to the ground.

The woman fainted from freight, and her child worried over his mother. Link frowned and stepped forwards. "Everyone! Get back!" Navi commanded, hoping that by making a larger arena the apparition's attention would fixate solely Link.

Link rolled his eyes and pulled out his sword. Everyone in the crowd was too paralyzed with freight to register Navi's words.

"HEY! MOVE!" The fairy shouted even louder, making Link wince. This time her order was followed as the crowd took an involuntary step back.

Just enough room. Link twirled his sword in his hand, waiting for the entity to make its move. Link knew that it was a foe conjured by the cloaked enemy, and for whatever reason, it took the form of a Wizrobe. Although it had been altered, such as the summoning of Wolfos. Then again, the Garo Master had been changed as well. For whatever reason, this new enemy was taking great pains in reminding Link of his past.

The Wizrobe summoned another Wolfos. The monster leapt up towards Link. The hero easily fought the thing back and cleaved it in two. The creature disappeared in a massive volume of black smoke that contained no odor.

Link rushed towards the Wizrobe and readied his sword to strike the foe. However, to Link's disappointment, the conjured enemy flew past him and behind him. Link frowned as he turned around. The thing was smarter this time around.

Without wasting another thought on his plan Link put his sword away. He then pulled out the much smaller sword, his bow, and an arrow. With his left hand he held the blade, with the other his bow and the arrow. He backed away from the Wizrobe and waited for an opening.

The apparition conjured up another Wolfos, which immediately came at Link. At that instant the Wizrobe fled to another part of the makeshift arena. Link lifted the dagger and stabbed the shadow animal in the head, dragging the blade through the skull. He sidestepped it as it landed and cut half of its head off via the throat.

Link twisted to face the general direction that the Wizrobe had gone and barely had the time to counter an attack. The wizard had summoned another Wolfos. Link lifted his left arm and his elbow caught against the creature's throat. He was sent to the ground by the impact force. Link struggled to shove the wolf back as it pawed at his sides while being mindful of the bow an arrow.

The Hero managed to fend the wolf off and run the dagger through the enemy's throat. He stood and stabbed the thing, making it vanish in a cloud of dark gray. Link looked around for the Wizrobe and saw that it was beginning to summon another wolf.

Link raised his bow, caught the end of the arrow and knocked it to the string. The tip of the arrowhead glowed yellow, rays of light shining from the tip. A split-second later he released the arrow and it flew with precision towards the summoning fiend. The arrow buried up to the tail into the being of the shadow. Great amounts of black vapor rose of the point of injury.

The Wizrobe stopped short in his staff twirling and pointed it at Link. A ball of black flames sprouted from the end of the staff. It flew towards Link at arrow speed.

Link debated his next motion for a split-second and then turned his back to the blast. If he had aimed his motion correctly the fireball would hit his shield and either be absorbed, destroyed or bounced back. Link hadn't wanted to move, for fear of the attack hitting a bystander.

The spell hit the shield and dissipated against the silver surface. He turned to look for the Wizrobe, which had moved by now. Link pulled out another arrow. The fighter brought the bow up, knocked the arrow, aimed and released in one smooth motion.

The second arrow almost hit the exact spot as the first and destroyed the apparition. Link smiled in satisfaction. He put the bow back in its proper place while sheathing his second sword. He looked around the crowd and sighed in relief. The only citizen hurt was the person that was dead when he got there.

"Young man!" A man from the crowd shouted as Link began to look for clues in the general area. The hero turned to look at him.


	22. Chapter 9 Families 2

"Yes?" Navi questioned for him. She settled down on Link's shoulder, sensing that this might take a little while. Link sized the man up, he was wearing an outfit that belonged to the upper echelon. His dark hair was combed neatly and he had sharp brown eyes. 

"Young man, what's your name?"

"He's called Link, he also doesn't speak. I'm Navi the fairy."

"Where are you from?"

"The north." Navi said, following Link's orders not to disclose too much information. She countered with a question before he could ask for more specific information. "Do you know where that fiend came from?"

"It came from the direction of the Forest Shrine. Monsters like that have been appearing in the shrine, but we didn't think that they'd come into town."

Link showed his understanding silently by nodding. He contemplated the information, no doubt the attack had been provoked by this nameless foe when he entered the town. Perhaps even the creatures there were on loan from him as well. This was a very obvious hint to tell Link to go to the Forest Shrine. "Take us there." Navi commanded. "Link will get rid of them."

The older man took a moment before responding. "Uh, okay. This way." The man walked forward and waved an aged extremity to Link, indicating needlessly that he should follow.

They walked down a long and winding path. The convoluted trail came to an end in front of a large stone wall. A large pair of ornate gates blocked the way. Each one was eight feet in width and thirty in height. The bars of the wrought iron gates were intertwined with creeping vines.

Link reached out a hand and tried the brass gate, finding it operated smoother than he had anticipated. Link tested some small amount of force against the gate to make an opening so he could continue, and found the gate nearly swung open of its own accord.

"Wait, young man."

Link sighed and turned to face the man that had led him here. "Yes?" Navi asked.

"Are you sure that you'll be alright?"

Link considered the question. His quiver was almost filled, the four bottles he carried were full of restorative items, he was fully rested, and completely alert. "Sure he is." With that Link walked in through the gates and closed them. From the outside he could hardly be seen.

Link stood just inside the grounds of the shrine. He waited and listened. He grew comfortable with the area in which he would spend some amount of time in, a considerable amount of it would be spent fighting and watching out for enemies. Getting used to the sounds of the shrine without any nearby enemies would make it easier for him to avoid ambushes.

The main area that greeted Link upon his entrance was full of gardens, trees, bushes and vines. Limestone pathways cut through the grounds and lazily brought its users from place to place. It would have been peaceful and near a paradise if it weren't for the dense black fog that stifled the air.

When he was sure of himself, Link trekked forwards. Link heard the subtle shift of leaves and the quiet grating of teeth directly to his right. He launched backwards as a bulbous navy shell propelled itself to where the fighter had been a mere moment previous.

The thing landed on the ground and was reeled backwards by an unhealthy looking vine towards something that resembled a flattened fern. That thing was an altered version of a Deku Baba. The enemy used the sinuous vine to leap towards unsuspecting and hapless victims. The blue head had rows of teeth that it would use to chew and eat anything it managed to catch. The saliva burned any flesh it came in contact with, readily dissolving the catch for consumption.

Link had managed to avoid its first assault. He had no intentions testing out how well the saliva of this altered Baba worked on skin. He pulled out his shield and his sword. As the Baba launched another attack on Link, it bounced off of his shield.

Link hit the foe during its state of shock as it rested on the ground and sent it reeling backwards. Its head was encased by a wooden shell that helped it survive Link's first blow. The Baba lifted itself straight up and used a black tongue to lick its lips, if they could be called that. It readied itself to aim for its prey once again.

Link smirked at the creature's mistake. At the same time the sword chopped through the muscular vine and severed the head from the ground. It bounced around for a moment before turning towards Link. It opened its maws and tried in one last feeble attempt to eat the Hylian.

There was the sound of wood splintering as Link rammed his blade through the thing's mouth. The end stuck out through the enemy. Victorious, Link flung his sword to the side, the head slid off and crashed into the stone pathway, shattering into splinters.

"Great job, Link!" Navi praised. Then something caught her attention. "Hey!" She said, "Look over there! What is that?" And flew over to the direction of what had peaked her interest.

Link turned his head to look in the track of Navi's hovering. His eyebrows furrowed as his eyes alighted on the oddity.

* * *

Zelda paced around the small room allotted to her. She stopped at the end of one circuit and, with uncharacteristic impatience, stomped her foot to the ground. The princess frowned and looked back at the pedestal the crystal had been put on. Her focus was Lei's Crystal.

She had heard the name Lei before. Lei was called the goddess of time, and was barely mentioned in Hylian text. Zelda had never heard of Lei's Crystal and wondered if it really was from Lei.

Zelda also had no idea what Amageten meant by saying that the crystal would be the end of her. The man had ignored Zelda's prompt and enraged questions about the matter. The cloaked man had left the room through a door after perching the crystal on top of the podium. Zelda had run over to the door in an instant, but it was locked.

The kidnapped princess had then gone over the glowing object with every intention of shattering it against the ground. However when she was within arm's reach of the item, the calm shifting of the colors inside the crystal had calmed her and she was unable to pick it up.

"In hindsight, it might not have been the brightest idea," Zelda reasoned with herself mentally, "It might have only made Amageten cross and he might have done something to me. Then again, he says it will kill me." She exhaled as more conflicting thoughts came to mind.

"Troubled, Princess?" A voice filled with sadism asked. Zelda flinched at the voice and it's calm and even, yet sinister, tone.

She turned to face the source of the voice. The princess also recognized the voice as the one belonging to the man that had kidnapped her. That fact alone made her nervous and she backed away from the cloaked figure that was half in shadow. Zelda backed into something that felt suspiciously like another person. She also noticed that the figure that had been before her had disappeared.

"Really, Princess, you should watch where you're going. It's rude to bump into people like that." The cloaked man said, ridiculing Zelda with sarcasm.

Zelda whirled around tried backing away from the man once again. This time she tripped and was instantly caught by someone. The cloaked figure had disappeared from her sight again.

"Honestly, Princess, please be more careful. We wouldn't want you harmed." He seemed to be genuine, in a very caustic manner, in his concern for her well-being.

Zelda spun on her heel, took a step back for good measure but stayed put. She gathered up the courage to speak to him. "Who are you?" For some reason, known only to Nayru, this being scared her to no end. Perhaps it was the red glow that came from the approximate area of his eyes, or the sinister look on his mouth, which was the only part of him she could see beyond pure shadow. Looking at him wasn't so bad; it was mainly the voice that rattled her nerves.

"Oh, so you can speak!" The cloaked figure exclaimed. A sadistic smile graced the lower part of his face. "The name's Umbra, Princess."

She shivered, the name had filled her with a nameless dread.

"Oh, no need to be scared of me, Princess." The cloak formed two arms as the shadow gestured to himself and continued, "I was only allowed to come in here under the terms that I would do nothing to you."

"Except toy with me." She muttered as a whisper to herself.

"Well," The man began as a response, "Master Amageten is _so_ lax in his restrictions. He said I was merely not allowed to do anything to you _physically_. He never disallowed mental torture." He smirked at her shock when she realized that he had heard her. "Oh yes, my hearing is quite good. I heard that remark loud and clear, Princess."

"Would you answer a question?"

"Well," Umbra said taking a step back as if to seriously consider it, "I'll answer that question. I'll give no guarantees about any others."

Zelda closed her eyes to steady herself, carrying on a conversation with Umbra was proving itself to be taxing on her calm. Then again, his presence and voice banished the majority of her collectivity. Zelda opened her eyes and stared at Lei's Crystal, it succeeded in allaying her fears by a little.

She decided that instead of asking him one question at a time, it might be better to opt for asking her plethora of questions at once. They came out in a rush. "Why will that crystal be the end of me? Why did you bring me here exactly? Are you the one that threw me into the river? Are you the one that shot me with an arrow when we came to Termina? What are you, precisely?"

"So many questions. Where to begin? How about with the first one? I'll let Master Amageten explain that one if he feels like it, I'll let Master Amageten explain, yes, yes, and I'll let Master Amageten explain." Umbra paused for merely a moment before continuing, "I know your next question, Princess. If I was supposed to capture you, why endanger your life? Simply because I was _hoping_ that it would separate you from everyone else long enough for me to take you away discreetly. Unfortunately, your precious hero was always there to stop me at my many attempts, Princess. It seems like I simply must be going. Don't hurt yourself." He simply faded into the shadows and disappeared from all of Zelda's senses.

Zelda sat down on the padding she had originally found herself upon. Maybe this was all a bad dream and sleeping again would help her to wake up, back in Termina. Zelda's head slumped forward. She knew that it wasn't the case, and this was real. There was no way a man such as Umbra could be a figment of her imagination.


	23. Chapter 10 Illusions

Hey, sorry about a lack of update lately. But know that I'm here, I'm on a roll, that and there shouldn't be too many chapters left. So maybe I'll be done by November.

* * *

_**Illusions**_

_Illusions are only a state of mind. They are only seen because something is playing off of the state of mind of the person or people viewing the illusion. If they were in a different state of mind, then the illusion would not work on them. The cleverest of illusions can work on different states of mind, that is, drowsy, alert, confused, and so many others. But there is no one illusion that can work on theme all._

_At the very least, not an illusion created by a mortal, but there are creatures, closer to the shadows then even Sheikah, that can cast such an illusion._

* * *

Link walked over to the object that had ignited the curiosity that now burned in his mind. He settled on his knees next to it and picked the object up, it was the size of three of his palms. The object was black and curved inwards. The only reason Navi or he had spotted the thing was because of the odd white sheen it had in the rain, like a glow. Then Link recognized the twin holes, roughly halfway up the thing's length, almond shaped. They were eyeholes. Which meant that the glowing object was a mask. 

He spun it around and gasped at the sight of the mask's face. Red marks, like scars, ran across the cheeks. The eyeholes were invisible on this side; the white glow gave the painted face an eerie effect, like it had no pupils or irises. The mask had a stern mouth. The silver-white hair had been carved into the style Link wore it. Above the hair at the top of the mask was an ice blue hat. He was so startled by the mask because, after seeing himself in ponds and mirrors, the face resembled his in almost every way, except for the markings.

"Hey!" Navi half whispered, "What do you think that thing is?"

Link shook his head, he didn't know. He knew it was a mask, but what its purpose was he was unaware. His fingers brushed against the skin of the mask, he had half expected the hair to be brushed aside as well, but it stayed firm having been carved into the mask. He placed it over his face, the mask fit like a glove.

His body was racked with pain, more pain then shifting into a Zora, Goron, or Deku Scrub had ever been. He cried out from the pain and then collapsed onto the ground as the rest of the change occurred.

He was wearing an ice blue tunic with jet black armor. After a moment pure white eyes opened and viewed the world, corners tainted with a white fog.

"Hey!" Navi shouted. "Link! Are you alright?" She asked in concern as she fluttered down to his shoulder.

Link sat up and shook his head, he felt as though swamp water had been dumped into his brain. He stood up and grabbed for his sword. When he pulled it off his back he noticed a lack of sheath, or shield. He studied the sword, which possessed a double helix shape and razor sharp edges. When Link looked back at the ground, he noticed that it was farther away then usual.

"Link, you're taller by a head," Navi said, answering his unasked question.

Link nodded and then reached up a hand to pull the mask off. The shift reversed itself, creating nearly double the pain that it had caused him before. When he was returned to normal, Link fell backwards, breathing hard. After a moment of panting he managed to push himself into a sitting position. The next moment saw Link standing on his feet again and pocketing the mask.

"Are you alright?" Navi asked again. She flew in front of his face and looked at him.

"I'm fine, Navi." Link mentally replied, "I used to do that all the time. It's nothing." He could tell that she was not convinced. Fire burned down his arms, causing a tingling sensation from his wrists to his fingers.

"Yeah, right, Link. I can read your thoughts." She reminded him.

"I know, Navi. I'm good enough to continue on though, so it's nothing to worry about."

"Alright, fine." She said reluctantly and followed her partner as he continued on through the shrine.

Link followed the pathway until it brought him to a locked door. Chains covered the entire entryway, and were wrapped many times around the handle. Link groaned at the sight of the door, turned his back to it and began to hunt for a key. He found it many minutes later after defeating more of the conjured enemies. With a sigh he rubbed the cut on his arm and opened the chest that had appeared from the shadows. He picked up the key and walked back towards the door.

As soon as the lock holding the chains up was released, the chains, and the key, dissolved into the shadows. He opened the door and walked into the shrine. Spider webs dusted the corners of the tunnel and there was very little lighting. He squinted into the darkness as his pale blue eyes adjusted to his new surroundings. As soon as Link let go of the door handle it sprang shut, but he continued to trek onwards without problem.

He jumped backwards as he heard something move above him. Where he had been a moment previous there was an enlarged black and red spider. Link looked at it and rolled his eyes. He pulled out his sword and sliced the thin web that was suspending the monster in mid-air. It crashed into the ground.

While the spider was still recovering from the shock of the sudden landing, Link slashed at the thing. A few legs fell off onto the ground. Then he stabbed it through the head. The corpse and strewn limbs disappeared into the darkness that coated the hallway.

Link continued to walk onwards. The Skultulla that had been mutated was just another reminder of the Forest Temple. He stopped the moment he realized what this place reminded him of. The hand holding his sword trembled.

"Link?" Navi called out from what seemed like miles. "What's wrong?"

How could this person know about the Forest Temple? He had traveled seven years into the future when he was ten to get into the Forest Temple. No one, except for Zelda, remembered that adventure of his. How could this person be reminding him of something that had _never_ happened?

Link shook his head violently. No, this was not a reminder of the Forest Temple. There was no way that it could be. Then again, there was no way that this person could know Link's sign language, something he had only used among the Kokiri. He offered Navi a smile, knowing that he did not need to tell her anything, because she had probably been reading his thoughts. However, the smile was meant to try and reassure her that he was fine.

He came to the end of the tunnel. With a sigh Link opened the door and was instantly blinded by the brighter lighting beyond. With blinked profusely to get rid of the water that had welled up in his eyes at the sudden change. When his oculars adjusted to the new setting, he felt as though he had been hit in the gut with a Megaton hammer.

It was a large room. To get to the floor of the room he had to go down a flight of stairs. To his left was a set of stairs that led up to another door, on his right side was a set of ledges, and perched at the top was a door. In the center of the room were four torches, set on pillars, with flames of as many colors. Link couldn't see the far side of the room given the shadows that encroached the area. This was like the first large room in the Forest Temple.

"Link?" Navi called out again. Her voice snapped him out of his confusion and he looked at her. "Something wrong?"

"Nothing." He tried to reassure her. He tightened his hold on the hilt of his sword. There really was nothing to be concerned about. He had gotten out of here alive once, he could do it again.

Link chalked up the similarity to mere coincidence. There was no way someone could have known the detail of the Forest Temple down to the exact color of the flames. It was deep in the Lost Woods and unless one had a hook shot it was impossible to get up to it. Link walked to the center of the room, there was a large open box in the square created by the pillars. When he got near it, the room dissolved into black for a moment until it the torches relit themselves, several meters off. As if he had been pulled backwards by some unknown force.

Link approached the pillars again, and again the light faded. When light returned, the torches were back to where they had been, but had the fiery hues of regular flames. Link frowned decidedly at the pillars and looked around. The room was different. It was smaller with creeping vines crawling up the walls. He heard the grating of teeth behind too late and tried to leap away.

The teeth of a Deku Baba dug into his arms. Link winced as he felt and heard his flesh being seared by the saliva of the demonic plant. He struggled to move his arms away from his body as the Baba grated its jaw back and forth. After a few seconds the creature was successfully removed. He spun around, using his shield to knock the creature back. It bounced along the ground, stopping once it reached the end of its tether. Link stabbed the roots of the Baba with his sword and as it bounced towards him he cleaved it in two.

Link surveyed the area and groaned. The room before had been an illusion, which meant that someone did know about the Forest Temple. Whoever this cloaked figure was, he knew far too much about Link for his comfort. He also noted that the box was missing as well. Link turned his head and saw a door opposite the one he believed that he had come through.

Link walked forward and grabbed the handle. The handle and the door vanished in a puff of smoke. Link groaned. Suddenly, he remembered something and reached into his pocket. A moment later the Lens of Truth was out and with an expert flick of the wrist he activated the magical lens. His vision was tainted red as he looked through the curved glass, but he found that the door had not really disappeared.

Link reached for the handle again, and opened the door. He stepped through and came to a large courtyard. The very center had a fountain that had the three goddesses carved in marble to around where the water spouted. They formed a circle around another figure with her arms raised. From between her hands the water jet upwards; Link did not recognize the figure, but he did not spend much time thinking about the fountain.

He looked, instead, at the three Wolfos that had appeared in the courtyard on the far side. Link drew his sword and shield, putting the lens back into his pocket. He deflected them by slamming his shield into the skull of the first beast to come at him. Then Link swung the shield to his right, twisting the arm to make the point of the shield jam into the neck of the second. With his left hand he stabbed the head of the third Wolfos. It howled and disappeared into the shadow that the fountain cast as the other two disappeared in similar fashions.

Link narrowed his eyes as he waited for them to appear again. He cautiously took a step forward, eyes looking all around the area. His right foot stepped onto the shadow of the fountain. Pain seared up his limb as the Wolfos materialized and bit into his leg. Link winced, letting his guard down for only a moment. The other two animals took advantage of the hero's mistake and jumped out of nearby shadows. One latched onto his left arm and the last Wolfos pinned him to the ground.


	24. Chapter 10 Illusions 2

Link managed to move his shield in front of his neck so that the attacking Wolfos couldn't reach the flesh to kill him. As the animal reared and howled in frustration Link jammed the point of his shield into the beast's underside. It howled in pain as the force of the impact moved it off of Link. Then the hero turned his attention onto his sword hand, crushing the side of the shield into the head of the Wolfos that was biting into his arm. It whimpered, giving Link enough room to tear his hand free. Link used his freed arm and sliced off the head of the Wolfos that had started the attack. It vanished in an explosion of black fire. 

Link was barely able to stagger up and bring his shield in front of him in time to block another rush from the Wolfos. He charged up his sword behind him and then swung around as both animals came at him at once. They both died at the same time. Link took a deep breath and managed to get a trembling hand to sheath his sword. He kept the shield out, however, just in case.

"Hey, Link! Do something about your arm." Navi instructed. She had been watching the entire fight nervously, wishing that she could do something to aid him.

Link then looked at the arm that had been attacked by the Wolfos. There were several gashes upon the limb, two inches or more in length and in some areas deeper then an inch. Blood poured freely from the wound, and the bite mark on his leg.

Link walked over to the fountain and rested the injured limb in the waters to clean it. Once that was taken care of, he pulled out some rough bandages to cover the injury. He had some red potions, but their effects were only temporary taken one at a time and blue potions were hard to come across in this land. He wrapped the cloth around his leg and arm, pulling it tight to stem the bleeding.

The Hero of Time took a deep breath and walked over to the vines opposite the door he had entered from. He had spotted a ledge almost two stories above, and the plants led directly up to it. Link climbed slowly, trying to keep the majority of the stress onto his right arm and left leg. After two minutes he reached the top and scrambled up onto the ledge. A door greeted his visage; he reached forward, ignoring the shadows that whisked the door into a more invisible state. The hero knew that the door could be opened without seeing it. He walked through the opening that appeared from mid-air and walked through.

It took him almost an hour to navigate around the shrine and make his way back to the room with the fountain. Link had sustained a great deal more injuries from the shadow monsters, however, he still had a great deal of fight left in him.

Link jumped down the ledge, rolling on the ground to avoid taking the direct force of the fall all at once. He got to his feet and walked across the grass and opened the door that led him back to the illusion room. Link was about to head back to the main entrance of the shrine to try and figure out how to remove the shadow curse that had been placed upon the grounds. His hand was on the handle to open the door and leave when a laugh stayed him.

Link whirled around and drew his sword off his back along with his shield. He looked around the room, but found nothing. Then the room turned black once more. When the torches once more gave the room light, their flames were the odd colorations again. The frame of a box had been put between the pillars again.

Link took the cue and walked over to the box and inside the frame. He placed his left hand against the metal rod that went along one of the edges, to balance himself as it slid downwards at bone breaking speeds. One minute later it came to a gentle halt. Link wondered if he was really going as fast as he thought he was, or if it was really taking him so long to get to wherever this thing was taking him.

The wary hero stepped off of the elevator and looked around, he saw only one egress. Opening the wooden door, Link had been half expecting to see a staircase in front of him. Instead it was a large circular room with a flattened flower in the center. As Link walked into the arena, he recognized what it was a mockery of. With sword in hand, Link strode further into the battle room. This might not be easy, but there was no use delaying the fight to come.

There was the cry of a native warrior and something dropped from the ceiling of the room. That something was a giant of a man with hands and feet that were stained black. Tribal paintings of black and blood red crept across his pallid skin. A shadowy mask with dark purple feathers covered his face.

Link frowned at the large creature. This was a mockery of Odolwa, an enemy he had defeated in the Southern Swamp back in Termina. He had no idea as to what new abilities this fiend would have, but he was certain that they would not be pleasant for him. The giant danced around the floor, nearly trampling Link several times. The hero was barely able to skirt out of footfall. Sometimes it would stop in its mad dancing to swing its large blade at Link.

The force of each blow against his shield made Link swear that he felt his arm breaking as he was sent backwards. After a while Link was able to dodge the sword strikes by rolling towards the mockery and then hitting the thing's ankles with his sword. It would roar with pain and try to stomp on him.

This process continued for a great deal of minutes as Link tried to defeat the creature. After ten blows the monster struck the ground with his sword. Black flames raced across the ground towards Link faster then he could react. The hero shouted from pain as burns formed on his body. He barely saw the giant go to strike him again. Link weakly brought his shield up, this time he felt the bone snap from the blow.

Link was sent flying to the ground. The hero winced as he struggled to get to his feet. No need to fear this thing. He jumped to the side to avoid the flames as the sword struck the ground. This time he they missed and he moved in, striking the monster with his blade again. It hollered and bent over, Link used his sword to use an upwards strike and hit its neck.

The monster roared as black wisps flew upwards from the wound. As it was getting back up, Link pulled off his bow, knocked an arrow, charged it with light energy and aimed at the monster's neck, right were his sword at struck it. He released the arrow and it flew straight, hitting its neck, and going all the way through, burying its head into the wall.

The giant howled in pain as it exploded into black smoke. Link felt his strength drain from his body. His knees gave out from under him and he fell onto them before landing on his face, almost completely unconscious.

"Hey! Get a potion! Link! Drink a potion! Listen!" Navi shouted at him in concern.

Link looked at Navi, his blue eyes clouded in pain, vision blurred. He could barely understand her words. The burns, broken arm, and blood loss were starting to get to him. The bandages he had wrapped around his leg and arm earlier were stained red almost completely.

He struggled to reach back for the bottles he carried. He grasped one, and wrestled it out of its holder. The device, which he had cleverly fashioned to keep the bottles from falling out easily and breaking, was a burden now. When he pulled it out, he noticed that it was filled with green potion. Link groaned and reached back for another potion, wrestling it out as well.

This time the contents were a blur of red. He tried, almost unsuccessfully, to prop himself up with his broken arm. He uncorked the bottle with his mouth, letting it drop from his slackened jaw, and then downed the entire contents of the glass container. Link fell onto his back as he let the potion take its effect. He felt his arm be realigned with searing pain as the bone was mended. The burns remained, but the gashes were healed and the potion stimulated an increase of his blood level.

After five seconds the potion's effects were complete. He sighed and sat up, picking up the cork and replacing it. Then he put both bottles back into their holders. Navi worried over Link.

"Hey!" Link didn't look at her as he stood up and tried to figure a way out of the arena, for the door had vanished. "Listen!" She demanded, and this time got his attention, "You need to be more careful, Link. You can't rescue Zelda if you keep up that tough guy act."

Link nodded, "Alright, Navi. Any ideas on how to get out?"

"No clue. Sorry, Link." She said and rested on his shoulder.

"Whatever," He thought as he flexed both arms. The room blacked out once more, and Link felt himself being pushed through the black. When Link saw again, he was standing outside the first town one came across when they got into Greater Termina.

He heard a whinny and saw Epona be pushed out of the shadows. Link ran over to the mare, who was pawing the ground with her hooves. She was backing away from Link, he could see the whites in her eyes. Link pulled out his ocarina and played her song, the mare calmed down, but did not come towards him. Epona didn't run away either. Link put the ocarina back into his tunic and walked over to her, patting her mane. He pulled out a carrot from one of his pouches and held it out to her. The mare took to it and then nuzzled him. Link pulled out a few more carrots and fed them to her as well.

"Hey." Navi said, Link looked at her while patting Epona's mane. "Where do you think you need to go next?"

Link shrugged and thought, "Maybe we'll be left with another clue."

Zelda stood near Lei's Crystal. She spent her time staring at it, as neither Umbra nor Amageten had come back since they had left. The princess had been unable to sleep, so she had gone over to the pedestal to get a look at the object perched upon it. Zelda idly wondered how much time had passed, a minute? An hour? A day? She was unaware of how much time had passed since she had begun to stare at the crystal.

Zelda watched the colors shift back and forth, so many shades at once. Twenty at the least. Yet it was calming, relaxing, soothing.

Zelda was only very aware of reality as it were when a pair of strong arms wrapped themselves around her waist. She took a relaxing breath and turned around to face the owner of the arms. Then she placed her hands on his shoulders and used a little magical force to send him backwards. The magic moved him all of an inch.

However, he removed his arms and moved backwards perhaps half a foot. All the while, sending chills down Zelda's spine with his laugh. "Well, well. Looks like the little princess of Hyrule can stand up to me after all." He said when he had finished laughing.

"Umbra," she said coolly. After staring at the crystal for what she assumed to be a great deal of time, her calm seemed to have come back to her. "Why have you returned?"

The shadow exhaled, "You don't like my presence, Princess?"

"No."

"Too bad." Umbra said and sat down next to a wall, arms folded and head bowed. Zelda didn't fail to notice that he sat as far from the only light source, Lei's Crystal, as possible.

The princess decided, that it would be best to sit nearest the pedestal as she could, instead of her instinctive idea to rush to the opposite side of the room. She knelt gracefully next to the pedestal, directly under the glowing object it bore. Her blonde hair looked like melted gold under the lighting and soft shadows whispered across her body.

Umbra looked up at her, made something near a guttural noise and turned his gaze back onto his knees.

At length she spoke again, "Umbra."

"What? In case you can't tell I'm trying to figure out how best to off your precious hero, and I don't want to be disturbed."

"Too bad." She echoed. The cloaked figure seemed to regard her in some form of shock. "Why did you come here to do that?"

"Because," he began, with a tone that hinted at his belief that he was talking to an irritating two-year old, "I'm supposed to be guarding you from doing anything stupid like killing yourself. In case you didn't notice we kidnapped you so that you could die by using that thing." He said and pointed at the crystal. Zelda couldn't help but hear the fury riddling his tone.

Afraid of angering the man, Zelda remained quiet and just knelt there. After what could have been hours he spoke once more, "Though that is what I told Master Amageten. Really, I think he keeps the upper chambers brightly lit just to keep me away from him! As if that would work if I really wanted to kill him."

"Why not leave?" Zelda suggested.

Umbra did not stir when she asked that question. He didn't even seem to be aware that she had asked him something. Zelda thought that maybe, after the outburst, he had fallen asleep. However, when she shifted her position for the sake of decreasing the numbness in her calves a minute later, he looked up at her in a heartbeat. Then, once satisfied that she had made no move towards suicide, he looked down again. Only a moment later did he stand.

"I have something to do. Try and stay lively, will you?" He said and disappeared.


	25. Chapter 11 Lakes

_**Lakes**_

_A lake is a wonderful place, a miniature ocean, with a beach of its own on all sides. It lacks the roaring tides and waves that give the ocean it's beauty. However it has an enchanting aura all its own, for the still waters are calming and relaxing. There are great mysteries in their depths._

* * *

Link turned around to head back into the village, but was stopped when he heard a woman.

"Link!"

The hero paused and turned to see who was calling to him. He smiled when he saw the owner of the voice and the companions that rode next to her. They were coming from the forest path to him.

When their horses stopped they jumped down and bowed to him.

"Link." The female repeated again. It was the same woman from Clock Town, Phlo.

"Phlogiston." Navi said and then addressed the other females, "Aeon, Bheesty. It's great to see you two again."

"It's Phlo." The older woman said stubbornly. "Stop calling me Phlogiston. But otherwise, hey."

"Hi!" Said Phlo's sister, black hair bouncing as she waved.

"Master Link, its good to see you again, this time without such grievous injuries." The shorter woman said, her blue hair fell into her face as she offered him a miniature curtsey.

Link grimaced at how formally the latter treated him. Navi pleaded for him, "Bheesty, Link's asked you not to do that."

"After saving not only my own life, but my parent's and sibling's lives as well, I cannot help but do so."

Link sighed. "He saved their lives as well, but they don't treat him like that."

"Well, Aeon's too young," Phlo said, "And don't start with me, I tried to kill you first time I met you, remember? 'Sides she's the prince's cousin." After that she crossed her deeply tanned arms.

"Hey, Link?" Aeon said, Link looked down at her, "What'd that letter say? I know that Princess Zelda was captured, but why'd you have to leave without Bheesty treating you first?"

"He needed to get here in five days. He stopped and bought some potion before leaving, so he's fine." Navi said for him and then said of her own accord, "Or at least he says. Can't you cure him of terminal heroism?"

The three women broke out laughing at her question. The blue haired woman stopped shortly and shook her head, "There's no such cure for that, I'm afraid, Navi." Then she added, "But don't worry, I don't think being a hero will kill him."

"It nearly will, all the time. Right, Link?" Navi asked him.

"What, did something happen already?" Phlo inquired.

"No." Navi immediately lied, sensing Link's masked irritation. However she was far too quick in answering the question.

"Did you drink a blue or a red potion?" Bheesty asked almost immediately.

"Blue."

The woman sighed, "And when you left Clock town?"

"Blue."

"Link," she said as she looked him in the eye, almost pleading with him, "I know that they are more effective then a red potion, but I implore you not to drink the blue potions too often. Not only are they difficult to come by, and to make, but they corrode your health when consumed too often. Drink red potions more often if you need to, but please don't wait until its almost too late and reach for a blue one." She said, correctly interpreting Navi's reason for asking the question and his recent use of a blue potion. "A red potion, or two, would have sufficed for your injuries back in Clock Town."

"He says he won't. And asks you to stop worrying over him. He says he knows what he's doing."

Link could not help but do the equivalent of rolling his eyes inside his head at the woman's talk. She had said this to him two years ago when he had first come to Greater Termina. He had slowed his rate of consuming the azure liquids, but not by much. He found them dead useful in a pinch where he would otherwise be dead.

"So then, Link. What are you planning to do now, unless you have the princess with you?"

"Oh no, he's rescued her, she's just coming along unguarded behind him." Navi said for him, calmer then he had it sounding in his head, but the words gave the effect he wanted. "He's trying to figure it out though. But he's going back to check on someone. Maybe they'll know."

And then Link had turned around and headed into the town. The three girls shared a look and followed him.

It took Link a few minutes before he could finally make it back to the blockhouse that Gavin lived in. He knocked on the door as the three others stood several feet distant. He heard someone inside shout, "Just a minute!" and in a few seconds the door opened. Gavin looked down at Link in half-shock.

"Oh, Link. You're back."

Link nodded. "Is Ramsay here?" Navi questioned. "He wants to ask her something."

"Sure, just one moment." Gavin said as he called behind him, "Ramsay!"

Link stood outside the door. The fairy landed on his shoulder. "Hey, just because the last clue was left with her, doesn't mean that he'll do that again."

"It's the only lead that I have though. If she doesn't have it, I'll need to scour Greater Termina for a clue." He thought back to Navi. She obviously didn't bother to follow his line of thinking.

In a moment the small fair-haired girl was at the door looking up at Link. "Hello, Mister Link!" She greeted.

Link crouched down so that he could be at eye-level with her. "Ramsay, did you happen to come across that cloaked man again?"

"No," the child said, while putting her hands behind her back and looking at the ground.

Link reached out a hand and tapped her shoulder. "Did you?" Navi asked again, "It's alright if you did."

"Yes." She said.

"Did he give you anything again?"

"Yes."

"Can Link see it?"

The girl nodded and held out her hands. In one fist was a tiny trinket. Carved entirely of wood. Link picked it up and examined it. He stared closely at the miniature object. There were odd grooves that marred the surface, as if the carver was an amateur and the tool had slipped into the finished piece many times. The edges were worn down by ages of handling. The object was a pyramid with a sphere placed at one peak. The thing looked, when staring directly at the sphere, like the pyramid was some childish attempt at wings. Link blinked in profusion when he realized what the thing was. The hand holding the object clenched around it in a sudden anger.

A child Link broke the surface of the water. He grinned up at the green haired girl that was standing near the small pool in the Lost Woods. She was grinning down at him, clutching something to her chest.

"Cool, Link!" She exclaimed as he dragged himself onto dry land. She extended a hand out to him and helped him to stand. "You nearly touched the bottom! That's so much better then what me or Mido can do."

The young boy grinned back at her, looking at the ground directly to his right while rubbing the back of his head.

"Here, I want you to have this. I made it myself." She said and held out the object that Ramsay had been given.

Link smiled at her once again and took the object, wincing as the rough edges came of in splinters around his hand. Link pocketed the object and pulled the slivers of wood from his skin. He smiled and bowed his head to her, his way of saying thanks.

"It's supposed to be a fairy. You know, since Mido's always teasing you for being fairy-less."

Link smiled at Saria. He bowed his head once again and together they walked out of the Lost Woods, the girl leading the way.

Link frowned and shook his head. He let go of the trinket and stared at it, confused. How had this cloaked kidnapper gotten his hands on this wooden fairy, it was a perfect match, even if it was a replica. Again, it was a reference to his past, a past which none should have known about. What this meant was beyond Link.

With a smile he handed it back to Ramsay. He had left that behind in the Lost Woods when he had left Hyrule. Where he had found out about it was beyond him. Link stood up. Perhaps it was a reference to the pool in the attached memory. Maybe it was a signal telling him to go to the beach, or the lake.

"Thanks, Ramsay!" Navi exclaimed as Link stood up. Then she whispered to him, "Do you really think he meant the water?"

"I don't know. The clues are enigmatic at best. However, he relied on the memory attached to the last object he gave her. So maybe it'll work again." He thought, and hoped that he was right. If he was wrong, he would be without a clue as to where to go.

Link had Navi extend his gratitude to Gavin before walking back to the three women that he had just reunited with.

"So, where are you off to next, Link?" Phlo inquired.

Time to decide, beach or lake. The pond was smaller, like a lake. Link was sure he would have pulled a reference to the beach if he had meant those southern shores. "The lake. He thinks he'll need to go there to get his next clue."

"Oh, well, come along then. You can get some food at my house." Bheesty said. She beckoned Link to follow her.

"Hey," Phlo said, "Could Aeon and I come along as well? We've got nowhere better to be."

"Of course, you both are always welcome." The slender woman said, smiling. She led them out of the town. They mounted their horses and set off to the western edge of Greater Termina.

"So, Phlo," Navi said after several minutes of riding, "Link wants to know why you were in Termina."

"Oh, we were actually looking for you. In all the chaos with Zelda being kidnapped and you being so injured, we forgot to mention it to you. There's been some major trouble in Greater Termina lately. I'm pretty sure you've noticed some shadow beasts. They've been plaguing our Holy Sites."

"Link did notice some new monsters running loose in the forest town and the Shrine there. But shadow beasts?"

"Yes," Aeon said, "at least, that's what Bheesty says." The blue haired woman was well ahead of the other three. So the young girl responded to Link's furrowed eyebrows, "They're monsters created from shadows, like the darker half of real beasts! But she also says that they're much more potent then they should be."

Link nodded. That explained the Garo Master in Ikana Canyon and the other mutated monsters he had encountered there. He was sure that this cloaked figure that had captured Princess Zelda was behind it all. "So, you've come across some?"

"Yeah," Phlo said, "we were all at the beach, we noticed this black fog over the Holy Site on the shore and went to investigate. We managed to beat off the foul beast there, but nearly died. That's when we came to get you. I don't know how bad it's gotten since, though."

"Right, and Link freed the Holy Site in the forest."

"So that leaves," Bheesty called out as she slackened the pace of her painted mare, "the one at the lake, the one in the desert, the one in the mountains, and the one by the river."


	26. Chapter 11 Lakes 2

"And we're heading to the lake." 

"Correct. Which will leave three Holy Sites to free."

Link nodded that was good. And then he realized something. The letter had said "By yourself, fight seven. With one exception, you'll see, wait patiently at the fifth or for the fifth." There were six sites throughout the whole of the land, and the three he traveled with had taken care of one, which left five for him. So the last part really was, "With one exception, you'll see, wait patiently after the fifth," since there would be five sites for Link to free, presumably by himself. What the other two fights would entail, he had no idea.

Relieved that he had finally decoded the last parts of the message that pertained to him now, Link eased Epona into a slightly faster stride to keep up with Bheesty. The older woman looked at him with a smile.

"So then, will you want our help like two years ago?"

Link shook his head. "The letter told Link to go by himself for them."

"Oh, I see." She said, "Well, at first I would suggest that you eat a meal and rest for perhaps an hour. I know that you wish to rescue Zelda as quickly as possible, but a dead hero is completely useless. Your body will cope better with food, and with rest you'll be near as you'll get to 100. You look completely famished, Link! Not only that, but you're covered in serious burns which will take some time to heal, even with my help, which I implore you to accept."

Link smiled at her and acquiesced to her request. He knew that she was speaking the truth. "He understands, and accepts." Navi said. "So, do you still have that harp?"

Bheesty nodded, "Of course. And the others still have what they were gifted with."

Link rode at a relaxed pace with the three. He was glad to have their company again. Two hours saw them at the lakeside village. They left the four horses on the outskirts of the village. Bheesty led them to a slightly larger and cleanlier house near the shores of the lake. She opened the door and announced their arrival in a clear and elegant voice.

Two hours later Link stepped out of the dining room. He glanced at a nearby window. The sky was a thick velvet black.

"Perhaps you should stay the night and head out in the morning?" Bheesty suggested to Link. "The Water Gate has no lighting and is absolutely treacherous after nightfall."

"Alright." Navi said and Bheesty led him to a guest bedroom. Link set down all of his supplies near the bed and lay down, again under the impression that the mattress was trying to consume him.

* * *

A fifteen-year old Link, sword in hand, rushed into the lakeside village in the middle of the night. Fires burned high into the sky, casting the illusion of a flaming daytime light. He entered the village gates and rounded a corner. Link ran head long into a tall tan woman, darkly garbed, with hair the same shade as her surroundings. She held twin silver daggers, held opposite the normal convention.

When she saw Link, she glowered at him, noticing his drawn sword. "You! Is this your fault?" She gave Link, and Navi, no time to answer as she immediately attacked him.

Link jumped backwards to avoid the blows, which came at him swifter then he had expected. He used his sword to disarm the woman, knocking the blades out of her hands with a little difficulty.

"Link just came into the town. He'd like to help, not fight."

"Din!" She muttered in irritation. "You're the only new face, though. Everyone else is rushing around trying to put out the fires. There's no sign of the perpetrator, anywhere!"

Link grimaced at her. "Link can't help his arrival. Let's look for the person that caused these problems."

"Alright." She said and stood up, deftly gathering her weapons. "Din!" She hollered as she remembered something, "The prince's cousin. We've got to find her! Come on!" And ran off.

Link chased her. They came to the large house near the shores of the lake. He noticed five people running out of the building. Then two black figures. Link's adrenaline spiked, they were thieves of the same type he had met coming into Greater Termina. One of them grabbed the young woman there, her bright blue hair shined like water under the firelight.

"Ah!" The woman screamed as a dagger was put to her throat. Link noticed that the other thief was pulling out throwing daggers, and aiming at the four others that had stopped at the woman's scream.

Link pulled of his bow, knocked an arrow to the string and fired it. The tip buried itself into the man's elbow, forcing him to release the dagger, and the woman, as he staggered backwards. During the shock that temporarily engulfed the man with the throwing blades, the woman that had attacked Link rushed towards him. She made quick work of the last thief, and he collapsed to the ground near dead.

Link looked at the lake's water after looking around for more thieves. "If only there were a way to get that water onto the village." He thought.

"Your ocarina, Link!" Navi whispered into his ear. "The Song of Storms. Play it."

Link felt like smacking his forehead at his forgetfulness. He pulled the blue instrument out of his tunic and played the song Navi had suggested, three notes repeating at first, very high in pitch. Within seconds, storm clouds gathered above the village, and broke out into a heavy rain, lightning striking at random on the outskirts of the storm. The magically called storm calmed down in a minute, but only after the fires had been quenched.

* * *

Link woke abruptly from his dreams. That was within the first week he had come to Greater Termina. Following it briefly had been a minor, but exhaustive, hunt across the land to get to the ringleader of the thieves, an exiled Gerudo. He had been required to visit the six Holy Sites in Greater Termina for the keys that would unlock the Gerudo's hideout.

During that time, the three that had met him in Clock Town had gained something tailored for them, a gift of the goddesses. Bheesty's was a harp of gold. Phlogiston's had been twin bronze daggers with silver hilts. Aeon had received a crystal that was made of several different ores. They had been given those so that they could help Link in his minor quest, the puzzles in the Holy Sites back then had frequently required the use of those objects. Later he learned that their families were originally from Hyrule, the land blessed by the goddesses.

The Gerudo thief, in their encounter, had taught him about the Heralds of the goddesses. They were people that had forms similar to those of the goddesses, and personalities to match. They were blessed with certain objects and had been meant to use them to aid those chosen by the Goddesses to bear the mark of the Triforce. Bheesty, Phlogiston, and Aeon were such a three.

He shook his head at the thoughts of the past. There was no use in reminiscing. He needed to leave and go to the Water Gate, the lake's Holy Site, to rescue Zelda. His past quest in Greater Termina had given him a familiarity with the land, nothing more. Recalling it now would only distract him further.

With that thought in mind he got out of the bed, put all of his things back on, and dropped out of the second story window into an alleyway. As he landed, he rolled, right into the trunk of a tree. Link sighed as the leaves shook and some fell to the ground. The thrice-proven hero stood up, and snuck away from the house and towards the Water Gate.

* * *

Zelda was shaken awake by the same mysterious man that had left Nayru knew how long ago. Once she looked up at his face, Umbra moved away, eyeing the crystal. Once he was a yard away, he spoke in the same sinister and sarcastic tone as he always had done.

"Well, looks like you stayed very lively, Princess."

"I fell asleep out of boredom." She said calmly, as a rebuttal.

"Ah, but you are very much alive, therefore lively, Princess." Umbra said, sneering at her. "Oh, in case you're wondering, I haven't killed Link yet."

"Thank Nayru for that." She said and stood up. She walked in a tight circle around the pedestal, moving the blood back into her long since numb legs.

"Peh!" Umbra exclaimed, and seemed to spit onto the ground. "You won't be thanking her for long, at least when I'm through with you, Princess!"

"And why is that?" she said, hating the fact that her hands had begun to tremble after hearing him talk again, and having to look at his face.

"Because, Princess." Umbra began, skirting the edges of the glow that the crystal cast, and gently pulling her further from the pedestal. "Very simply, when I'm through with you, you'll use that crystal."

"And what," She started, losing more of her calm the farther she was dragged from the light in the room, "am I supposed to do with that crystal?"

"Why," Umbra began in a tone that parodied shock at her ignorance, "resurrect the Dark Lord Ganondorf, of course. Surely, Master Amageten has informed you of that at the least. No?" He asked, regaining the usual snide tone, "Of course not, he hates this room because it must be dark. And he really hates being around me, but since it is the only dark room, it's the only place I'll be, so I don't expect him to ever reenter this room, unless he needs to." He let go of her wrist once they were in the darkest corner of the room, "But that is why, Dear Princess, he asked me to explain some things to you. Like that for example."

Zelda looked forlornly at the crystal, desiring to be back in the sphere of light that it cast. Umbra used a hand to move her chin so that she looked directly into the red glow that marked his eyes. She could barely see the smirk on his mouth from the shadows.

"S-so let me see if I understand this. You want me to kill myself to bring back Ganon?"

"Well, Master Amageten does, of course. I am not stupid enough to believe such a thing. Your heart is filled with far too much light to even consider doing such a thing. Sacrifice Hyrule's crown princess for the Dark Lord? Scandalous!" He paused, letting her think that he sympathized with her and then continued, "Or at least, that's what you're thinking. I care not really. It's just such a waste of a beautiful face, in my opinion. But you see, Master Amageten wants Ganon back. And being filled with such light, you are the only person that can properly use the crystal, at the height of its power."

"What does it do?"

"Obviously, at the crux of its power, which in this case is sometime in the near future, five days I believe, Lei's Crystal allows the pure heart to desire one wish of anything, at the cost of that person's life." He said it as though it was the simplest thing in the world, and that Zelda was not deserving of the Triforce of Wisdom if she could not discern even that. "You of course, are not thinking about going along with Master Amageten's plan. But when I am through with you, you will."

"No I won't. Link will come and stop you anyway."

"Oh, relying on your precious hero, are we? Trust me, you are the last thing on his mind. Right now he's spending his time hanging out with three beautiful women, and you are not crossing his mind in the slightest."

Zelda closed her eyes, willing Umbra to let go of her. She would not believe that. Not ever.

"Of course, you don't believe me," Umbra said, as though reading her mind, "but I can show you."

With that the mysterious cloaked figure disappeared. Zelda fell to her knees, mind and body numbed by fear. In moments he returned, kneeling next to her, hand once again forcing her head to tilt somewhere. But this time the focus was a ball with a vapor that had the texture of steam and was of dark purple colors.

"Now look, I'll have this thing show you exactly where Link is as of right now."

He passed a hand over the object, the purple cloud in the ball dissipated at the center. Link stood, riding on Epona with a contented look on his face. Navi was resting on his shoulder. He was riding with three others. Two rode stallions, a palomino and a roan, and the other a painted mare. The women looked to be laughing.

"See, Princess? He's having a very good time, not even thinking about you."


	27. Chapter 12 Gates

The rest of the Holy Sites shall not be getting a lot of love from me

The rest of the Holy Sites shall not be getting a lot of love from me. Not like the Forest Shrine. Each one will be one chapter, and the boss fight will be abbreviated…maybe…depends on my mood. But I want to get this over with so I can start on the sequel. Which…will also probably not be getting a lot of love from me. Not like this story.

_Also, the reduced number of chapters is caused by the lovely chapter titles and headers…which are becoming very hard to create._

With love, Digi

* * *

_**Gates**_

_A gate is perhaps a very intriguing way of controlling the movement of any object. They can filter things, such as water or air, but not allow pots or thieves or anything of the like in while close. When opened anything can pass through them, unchecked, good or evil, holy or base._

Link wandered along a narrow path that ran right along edge of the lake. The left side of the path was slightly darker then the rest, as though the lake, in its motions, had gently lapped at the edge of the lake and then timidly crawled back into its boundaries. Link stayed away from the wet sand, wondering just what the stranger had in store for him this time.

The hero looked up as he was halfway from the village to the Water Gate. The gentle dome of slate towered above the surrounding landscape. It had a steeple made of steel that was coated in thin panes of silver. Stained glass windows that were ten times Link's size glinted in the morning sun. They depicted scenes of the goddess Nayru, her sisters Faeore and Din. There was another woman in the pictures, a young child, the same as the fourth figure in the fountain from which the water had come from. The temple was built on a fountain of gray stones that had been finished to look like they were constantly covered in morning dew.

The Water Gate itself was at the base of the lake where the river fed the waters, which poured out into the ocean in little tributaries. The rising sun cast the temple in a pink haze of light and made some of the silver look like copper. Link's eye for beauty had been greatly diminished by the regularity with which he saw breathtaking sights and sights that stunned almost everyone else, however he still knew that the visage would impress most others, Zelda in particular.

Link shook his head at the thought, took note of the image of the Water Gate in the morning, last he had seen it, it was the middle of the night and there were fires burning off in the distance. Even then, the Water Gate had been a breathtaking sight.

He continued to march along the path to get to his goal of the Water Gate. He stopped in front of a set of doors that were carved from a white wood that made them look like marble. They were ten feet high. Above the doors was an inscription that was outlined in pearls. It said, "To those that enter, may you find Nayru's blessings abundant and fruitful."

Link walked into the temple. He wondered if the stranger that had caused him all these problems had read the message and merely laughed at it. Link had the strong feeling that the man held no love of the goddesses, or cared for their blessings.

He looked around the first room that greeted him. The stained windows lined all of the walls that blocked the room from the outdoors and cast colored light over the floor. Link had trouble discern objects' natural from the green, pink, sapphire, and ruby tints that hung over them. He longed for natural sunlight, but he knew that all of the rooms in the Water Gate would have a similar situation. Link walked through the room and around the perimeter. There was nothing in the room save for marble statues. There were strings of baroque pearls hanging from the ceilings and the shells of freshwater mollusks had been used to create murals that made detailed the scenes in the stained glass windows.

As he walked towards one of the doors that led deeper into the Water Gate a black mist began to fill the room. Link whipped around to examine the room. His scrutiny brought him no closer to the source of the mist then he had been originally.

"Hey, Link! This mist doesn't look good. Get out into the open. Quickly!" Navi said.

Link nodded and went back to the door. He opened it and found that the next room was filled with the same black mist as the room before it. The hero frowned and continued forward through that room as well. It was not until he could almost feel the motion of it's movements at his ankles did he notice the jumping blue insect in the room with him. Link pulled his sword out of its sheath and rammed it into the insect's back.

The tektite did not die as he anticipated. It did, however, stop jumping and turn around to face him. Link paused, he had never seen one of the jumping blue creature's do so before and backed away. The tektite seemed to inhale as it's body rose up high in the air and expanded.

Then it deflated as the body fell towards the ground, only as a stream of black liquid came at Link. The hero jumped to the side, rolled, and stood. He swung his sword down on the creature and it was cleft in twain by the blade. Link bent down and examined the tektite's remains that were being absorbed into the black mist. The ends of its four yellow legs were tinted in black and the tektite's armored back was a darker color then normal.

Link choked after coming to that realization and fell over onto the ground. He clutched at his throat with his right hand while using his left to hold his body up, sword pinned under his palm.

"Hey, Link!" Navi shouted from above the rising mist. "The fog makes it hard to breath! Get up!"

Link turned an angry thought to the fairy, wondering why she couldn't have said that earlier. He forced himself to stand up and walked out of the room. He walked towards a door and opened it. With a groan he realized that the next room was also covered in the dense fog that was now halfway up his thighs. He sped through the room, but kept his sword out. He raced into the next room, which was also covered in the fog. He was stopped short as he tripped over a ledge he hadn't seen in the mist. He fell into a small pool of water. Link looked around for enemies and saw that the pool was full of man-eating fish skeletons. They had stopped to look at him.

Link's eyes widened and he quickly took a look around the pool. The other side was several yards distant. The bottom was covered with a depiction of the goddess Nayru. He struggled to the surface of the water, and was greeted by the black mist. The hero held his breath and dived back under the water. He swam for the distant side of the pool. He brushed through the school of bony piranha and made it to the other ledge.

He hoisted himself out of the water as he felt one of the creatures latch onto his right calf. Link reached back and detached the thing from his leg. The fish thrashed in his hand as he examined it. The fish was also tainted black, like everything else he had encountered so far. Link threw the fish into the fog somewhere in front of him as he stood. The fog was level with his waist by now.

Link sighed and looked around for Navi. The fairy fluttered onto his shoulder. He could tell that she was worried to the point where words had left her, which was a relief for him. He looked around and noticed by the murals, and by the pool, that this was the room of reflection. There was usually a walkway over the pool and people were expected to stop and kneel by the ledges to reflect upon their past wrongdoings and garner the forgiveness of Nayru, who had forged the law which they had broken.

He turned around, wondering if his mysterious enemy had removed the bridge. Link walked along and came to another door. He opened it and came into another room. The tinted light of the glass windows made almost no difference in the color of the fog that it hit. The mist was rapidly increasing in volume and in density. Link spotted the top of a door far from him. He took a deep breath, the fog was halfway up his chest, and sprinted for the door.

He ran chest-first into another tektite. Unable to determine its coloration from the fog, Link merely swung his sword, hoping to hit the creature. He felt contact after a few useless swings and then swung again. Then noting the increased height in the fog, Link decided to ignore the tektite and ran for the door again. He opened the door and opened it. The door revealed another fog filled room. Link knew that this would be the big sanctuary, if he remembered the map correctly, and at the rate the fog was increasing it would be well over his head by the time he could reach the door that led outside.

Regardless, got a fresh breath of air, the fog was beginning to level with his chin. Pain stung his eyes as the fog wafted up towards his forehead. He charged into the room, hoping that he was right and that there were no more surprise enemies. All he could see was black in front of him and around all sides.

"Hey!" He heard Navi's muffled voice cry out, the fog blocked sound as well. "The fog's stopped increasing."

"Good for you, Navi." He thought. "It's stopped, over my head, lot of good that'll do me."

"Jump. Maybe you'll get high enough to breath." Navi suggested.

Link waited until his lungs were burning for breath air before trying Navi's idea. He jumped with all the strength that he had, but given the weight of his gear, he did not get very high before he was pulled back down. Only half of his face cleared the fog. Link thought quickly, trying to think of a way that he could get air.

The hero then remembered something. He pulled out the mask he had gotten in the Forest Shrine. Link put it on and felt the pain as his body was shifted to that of the being that had had the lingering edges of its spirit attached to the mask. The fog was now level with his chin and he was able to breath. He forced himself by will not to bend over and pant from the pain. Link looked around the room and spotted a stained glass window, one of Nayru holding her hands out towards a river. That was directly over the door that led to the bridge that connected the Water Gate to its other half on the other bank of the river that fed the lake.

He sprinted over to the window, as the fog had slowly begun to increase again. He took a breath and bent down, trying to open the door. He found that it was locked.

"Din!" He cursed in his mind and looked around the fog sea that surrounded him.

There was no way he would be able to find the treasure chest with the key inside it with this fog. He turned back towards the door. He would also suffocate if he couldn't get the door open. Link removed the mask and shrunk back to his normal size. He walked towards the door and tried to force the door open. Link dropped the mask and cursed again. He bent down to pick it up, careful not to breathe, and felt around on the ground for the mask, he couldn't even see the elbow of his extended arm.

His hands brushed against something wooden. He leaned towards it, lost his balance from a shift in the gear that he had on his back and fell forwards. His head knocked against the floor while the middle of his chest fell on the object, which proved to be a half foot tall. The air was expelled from his chest. He took in a deep breath to regain his wind, only to take in the suffocating black mist. Link forced himself to roll off the object and onto his back. Try not to breath in more, but still suffocating, Link forced himself onto his knees.


	28. Chapter 12 Gates 2

His diaphragm contracted, trying to force him to breath. He doubled over to fight the urge and instead breathed out without inhaling to try and discharge the mist from inside his lungs, he wasn't sure if he had succeeded, the burning pain lingered within his lungs.

Link put a hand out to steady himself, trying not to panic, desperately hoping that there would be a way to get out of the room with his life. Link's fingers brushed against something. He weakly lifted his fingers up and placed them on the top of the object to bring it towards him. The object was glowing white, penetrating the darkness. Link lifted it up to his face and saw that it was the mask. A psionic wave emanated from the mask, the fog cleared in a sphere around him.

Link sharply inhaled the cleared air and found it invitingly fresh. So inviting that he took another breath. Link looked down to the object he had fallen on earlier and saw that it was a chest. He vaguely wondered if it could have the key that he needed and opened the chest with his hand. Link noticed that it did hold a key that could open the locked door nearby.

He stood up and went over to the door. He put the key into the chains that shackled the sliding door shut. They turned into wisps of black steam and faded into the nearby mist. Link slid open the door and walked out onto the bridge over the river.

Below him water rushed at speeds Epona could not match, only to fall over a fifty foot drop to feed the lake. The bridge was made of several enormous stone arches that were coated with slate for the walkway there were no sides to the bridge, but it was wide enough that falling was not considered an issue. The arches had small bars of iron run down them to the bottom of the river, and kept most of the litter that was thrown in out of the lake. The mist poured out from the room Link had just come from and cascaded gently off the sides of the bridge and disappeared at the surface of the river.

Navi flew out of the room with the mist and flew up to Link.

"Hey! Are you alright! I thought you were gonna suffocate, being down in that fog for so long! I couldn't tell how you were doing!" She exclaimed as she flew around his head.

"You mean you couldn't read my mind, Navi?" Link thought to her.

"No, that fog was so thick that it blocked me!" She replied and continued to circle his head. "That fog was not natural!"

Link gave her a long look and sighed. "I'm alright, by the way." He thought to her, answering her original question. He looked down at the mask that was still in his right hand. "This mask saved me. It cleared the fog a little so that I could breath."

"That's strange." Navi replied thoughtfully as she floated down to take a closer look at the mask. "I didn't think that masks could act of their own accord."

"Nor did I." Link responded. He turned around and decided to march to the other side of the bridge and start investigating there.

An hour later, Link had returned to the reflecting pool. He had come across more of the fog, and when it had gotten over his head, the mask gave him a small sphere to breath from for ten seconds before it collapsed and Link was shrouded again. The enemies were not as badly affected by the fog as Link was. The hero had a suspicion that it was because the enemies had been conjured by the same man that had summoned the fog and were thereby immune to its effects.

He stared at the image of Nayru at the bottom of the pool, distorted by the ripples in the water. Underneath the water, her image was made even more stunning. The water somehow enhanced her appearance and made her look more divine then the images of her in the stained glass windows. He wondered if the people that had designed the Water gate had had this in mind while they made the image in the reflecting pool.

The pathway hadn't been removed, Link noticed when he took his eyes off of Nayru. He had merely fallen into one of the open edges of the pool in the thick fog that had vanished from earlier, it was as though the Water Gate had been emptied of the mist when he had opened the door to the bridge.

Link walked forwards and went into a room he hadn't gone to before while he was trying to escape. He vaguely wondered what he would face in this Holy Site. Perhaps it would be the giant fish he had fought in the Great Bay Temple, Gyorg, or perhaps Morpha. Then he thought farther. Perhaps it would be Dark Link, a shadow of himself that Ganon had created in the Water Temple to prohibit his movements.

His wonder was cut short as he came across the boss's chamber. It was a large room with a pool in it. There were spikes along all of the walls and four stone pillars had been built into the pool. Link frowned, he found it hard to believe that this room was a natural part of the Water Gate. He was certain that it hadn't been here when he had visited the Water Gate earlier, two years ago.

He pulled out his hookshot and waited for the imitation of Morpha to appear. In moments a black orb that looked strangely like a dead and decaying heart moved up through the water and circled the platforms in the pool. It swirled around between the four platforms and a water tentacle began to form. The tentacle was tipped in black and dark steam wafted off of it. Link did not want to be touched by the giant amoeba that had been conjured by this foe, he had the feeling that the throws would hurt him quite a lot more this time around rather then the last time he had fought Morpha.

The tentacle swung at Link. The hero ducked to the side and avoided the tentacle. Aimed his hookshot at the point where he thought that the black nucleus of the amoeba would be, just like he had been required to do in the last fight. However, this time, the nucleus did not move upwards so his hookshot could pull it out of the tentacle. Link was surprised by this evolution in intelligence.

"Hey!" Navi shouted, snapping Link's attention from the battle. "Watch out!"

Link instinctively jumped backwards. He saw another tentacle fly in front of him, and clench the air where he had been standing a moment ago. Link flashed his thanks to Navi in his thoughts and concentrated on the fight at hand.

He felt an urge to use the mask that he had gotten in the Forest Shrine. He waited a moment and decided to use it. He needed a new tactic of fighting this enemy, his old strategy had been proven useless as this Morpha was smarter then the last. He pulled out the mask and put it on. He was filled with pain as his body shifted into a different form.

He took a moment to recover and then drew the large sword off of this form's back. He heard a voice tell him to concentrate magical power at the edge of the blade and then swing it. Link listened. A blast of energy in the exact shape of the arc he swung flew from the sword. Link grinned and aimed the next blast at the nucleus. If he couldn't bring the enemy to him, he would hit it from afar.

It took him only a few more swings to destroy Morpha. As the room was fading to black, Link turned around and tried another blast on the spikes that surrounded the wall. They were destroyed. Link's eyes widened in shock at the strength of the attack. The room disappeared and Link found himself in an elegant room with delicate furniture. The chamber had been an illusion after all.

Link took off the mask and walked out of the room and then exited the Water Gate.

* * *

"I don't believe you. You're lying."

"Oh, but I'm not, Princess." Umbra replied to Zelda. He circled her like a predator would do to its prey.

"That simply cannot be the truth."

"You obviously don't know your hero very well." Umbra whisked the purple orb back out from the sleeve that seemed to melt off of his cloak.

"You know what it showed you. You can't deny what you saw."

Zelda took a breath and steadied herself. If she was going to beat Umbra at his own game, then she needed all the mental strength that she could get. He had a way of turning everything that was said around to make it fit his needs. The part that scared her was the fact that she found herself nearly believing him most of the time. She was certain that he might be able to convince her that the sky was actually green if he wanted to. But the sky was blue. And Link would not have forsaken her. Not with her father still in Clock Town.

"It's always like that with him, and most men in general. You know this as a fact, Princess. Don't deny the truth of it. If you're not in sight, then he's not going to think about saving you. There's no need for him to, he's not looking at you while you're in danger. Out of sight, out of mind, you know."

Zelda shivered. She almost found herself agreeing with him. Once she realized what was happening she shook her head. She spoke, "But you're a man too, Umbra. Are you not? So why is it that you remember anything that your Master tells you when he's not in sight?"

Umbra stopped, he hadn't been expecting her to actually come up with a response. He then walked closer to her. He towered over her and the red glow of his eyes became more piercing. "First off," he said in a voice that was quieter, smoother, and full of more malice then before. Zelda flinched at the sound of his voice and trembled. "I believe I said in general. Besides." Umbra walked away and flippantly sat down by a wall. His voice changed back to its normal and less sinister ways. "It only has to do with rescuing and that heroic bit. What Master Amageten tells me to do is not very heroic." He paused thoughtfully and turned towards Zelda, "Unless you want to dispute that?"

"No." She said.

"Good." Umbra replied, almost as if she had said something intelligent for the first time in her seventeen years of life.

"But I still do not believe you or that shadow orb. How can I be certain that you were not just making it show me what you wanted it to show me, regardless of whether or not it was true?" She gave him a steady and even look. Now that he not towering above her as she sat on her knees, it was easier for her to carry on a conversation with him.

Perhaps sensing this, Umbra stood up and began to circle the princess again. "I'll show you just how real this shadow orb is, Princess."


	29. Chapter 13 Oni

Hey, everyone got that Zelda was implying that Umbra was a girl with her remark, right?

* * *

_**Oni**_

_The Oni was a race that Faeore created. They were powerful, potent creatures. They were the race that Din blessed to give them the strength to uphold Nayru's laws. They were a timeless race, blessed to never die from age. There were no children in the Oni, nor were there old men. They were all the same age, all in their prime, all at their peak of strength. They had been blessed to never age once they reached their own summit of power._

_Their leader was the strongest and most courageous of them all. Their leader held our most powerful blessings and upheld Nayru's laws to their full extent. He was called "Fierce Deity" by the races that were not Oni._

* * *

Link walked back to the town he had left earlier in the day. By the position of the sun it was around noon, he figured. He felt a gnawing feeling in his stomach and thought that it was time to get some food. He had been hungry for hours, that didn't surprise him. He had run out of the house without breakfast, only eating a piece of salted meat, and had expended a lot of energy fighting in the Water Gate.

"Hey, do you think they'll be mad if at you for leaving without letting them know?"

Link shrugged, "They should be able to figure out that I would leave first thing after I got up."

"Phlo is gonna be so angry at you." Navi said. Link only nodded and continued on his path to the lakeside.

Link heard the woman talking before he got to her. He stopped walking and hid behind something. Her voice was moving, as though she were walking.

"That damn fool. He should have least eaten before leaving."

"Sister," He heard Aeon say, "Please, calm down. You look like you're going to kill him when you see him."

"I might just do that. Or at least hurt him a little. What was he thinking?! Leaving without letting us know. Bheesty's worried sick. Din, what a fool."

Link pressed himself against the wall at Phlo's words. He crouched down and ducked behind a crate, hoping that Phlo wouldn't spot him while he hid. There was nothing he feared more than an angry woman, especially one of Phlo's personality. Navi fluttered by Link's head.

He listened as Phlo passed by his spot. After he was certain he was safe, he got up and walked out of the lakeside town. There was nothing to keep him there. He played Epona's song and the mare galloped over to him. She whinnied and waited for him to mount her.

He checked her bags and then jumped astride her back. Link gently patted her neck and she ran forwards. He steered her towards the north, the direction of the desert. It would be the easiest to clear the rest of the Holy Sites by first visiting the desert.

It took him several hours to get to the edge of the desert, by now the sun was quietly slipping beyond the forest that was just beyond the edges of the desert. He exhaled heavily and pushed Epona forwards. The horse eyed the sand warily but followed Link's commands. The soft sand made it harder for Epona to run, however they pressed forward faster than Link could have done on his own.

Night had claimed the land by the time they made it to the desert town that was in front of the Holy Site, the Sand Arena. It was a stone building that was multi-tiered and was in a circle, as though there was to be a great fight in the center. Even from a mile distant, the Arena was a monument on the horizon, a tribute to the goddesses and their might.

He checked in at a small inn. The town was buried in a cliff side to protect it from the terrible sand storms that plagued the desert. He put Epona into a stable, despite her protestations, so that she would not get lost in the desert sands. He took the saddle and bags off of her, patted her neck, feed her several carrots, brushed her down, and left her there. She whinnied after him, as if questioning why she was locked up in the stable.

He then went into the tavern that was attached to the inn. A waitress came over to him and she asked for his order. He took a sum of thirty rupees out of his wallet and placed them on the table in front of her. Navi rested on his shoulder.

"He'd like a large plate of meat, some bread, and a drink. He's says that you can keep whatever's left."

"Hon, that'll give me ten extra. You sure about that? I can just give you the blue ones back if you'd like."

Link waved a hand dismissively. "He says that you can have it." Navi translated.

The waitress nodded and pocketed the rupees. In minutes she came back with a tray of food for Link. There was a quarter of a loaf of bread, at least half a pound of meat and a large mug of a foaming and yellow liquid. She dropped the tray on the table in front of Link and walked off.

Link stared at the mug; he had never drunk anything like it before. He took a careful sniff and didn't find it to be poisonous. He took a sip and found the taste slightly unusual. He shrugged and downed the food and the mug. He found himself surprisingly thirsty, so he called the waitress over for a second drink and gave her another blue rupee. She gave him an odd look, but returned with another glass. He gulped it down quickly.

Navi rested on the table in front of the tray. She wondered like Link what the mug was. She looked around and saw that most of the people in the tavern were drinking mugs filled with a similar drink, so she shrugged it off.

Link got up, knowing that his bill had been paid in advance and walked out of the tavern. He went to the room he had checked out and sat by the window. The moon shone brightly in the room. After some time his vision became distorted a fragment. Link passed it off on exhaustion and the mist he had inhaled earlier in the day. He walked over to his gear that had been stowed by the foot of the bed, double-checked it and kicked his boots off next to his shield. He jumped into the bed and quickly drifted off to sleep.

The next morning he awoke with a sharp pain in his head. He rubbed his right temple, for that was the side that hurt the most, and wondered what had caused his headache. He groaned at the pain, and got out of the bed. He was surprised, after two large drinks the previous night his throat was parched. Link rubbed his burning eyes and slowly got his things together, finding that even after a solid and restful night's sleep he was still drowsy.

He walked down the stairs and into the tavern, intent on getting some more food and some water. The waitress from the night before was in there and greeted him.

"Link would like some food and some water."

"Alright, hon. Wait one moment while I get it for ye."

He sat down at the same table from the night before and was grateful for the silence. The thought of noise made his head hurt. The waitress came and brought him a bowl of porridge and some biscuits. She gave him a large glass of water. Link downed it gratefully.

"You look like you have a pretty bad hangover, hon. You alright?" The waitress inquired. "I was wondering if you'd be a'right with two beers an' all."

Link looked up at her curiously, holding half of a biscuit in his hand.

Navi voiced his question, "What's beer?"

The waitress was stunned into silence. "You've never heard o' beer before, hon? What do you do?"

"He wanders around helping people. He mostly eats dried meat and drinks water from rivers and lakes. Link never comes into taverns for food. So, what's beer?"

"It's an alcoholic drink, hon. You mean you've never drunk alcohol before?"

He shook his head and the waitress sighed. "Well, hon, it's a type of drink that'll make your head seem a bit off kilter an' a lil' while later ye'll have a hangover, like a headache and so on. You drank two pints last night, I was wonderin' if you could even behave normal with that much. There's nothin' that'd cure it though, gotta rough it out." With that she walked off.

Link nodded. That explained why he felt so bad. He finished his food and made a note to himself never to drink alcohol again.

He put a hand to his head and walked out of the inn, paying for the night's stay. He had Navi tell the inn keeper that Epona was to stay in the stables until he returned later on in the day. He didn't want to take her to the Holy Site. The inn keeper nodded at him and agreed to it.

Link stopped at the stables, patted Epona's mane and fed her more carrots. She nuzzled him, she could tell that there was something wrong with him. Link patted her mane and left her locked up again. She stamped her feet and pawed the ground with her hooves. She was anxious being locked up in the stables for so long. Link ignored it and walked out of the town.

To compliment the effect of the beer, Link found that there was a strong sand storm blowing out in the desert. Link groaned and walked out of the town into the blistering sand. He put a hand in front of his face to protect his eyes, gritted his teeth and pressed his way through the desert storms.

After a long time the torrent of sand was broken by the small maze that guarded the entrance to the Sand Arena. Link spat out the sand that had made it into his mouth and found that the effects of the beer had been alleviated by a great amount. He sighed and rubbed his eyes and took a sip of the water from the skein attached to his belt.


	30. Chapter 13 Oni 2

Link walked through the maze and walked into the Holy Site. He found much of the same in the Sand Arena. There were walking statues, mostly of black color and coated in metal armor. They appeared in almost every second room he entered. There were also spirits that spewed black fire from an ancient black pot as he neared them. There were hidden floor masters and quicksand. Leevers that were black at the bottom appeared from the pits of quick sand that layered the floors of the Sand Arena. They chased Link across the sand.

Link wound his way through the labyrinth of the Holy Site and found that as the battles went on his lethargy was lost to adrenaline and the headache became forgotten by the many blows he took while still half awake due to the alcohol.

He came to a large door near the top level and opened it. This revealed the winding staircase that circled the center area of the Sand Arena. There were no windows looking into the center. Link found the dark stairwell that was dimly lit by ever-burning torches a welcome bliss for his stinging eyes.

The stairs leveled out and Link opened the large doors at their bottom. The ground was a circle of stone that gave way to a pit in the middle. The pit was filled with sand that fell in from the sand storms. In the middle of the pit there was a half buried stand creature. Signs of rotted flesh were strewn on the sand around the large skeleton. It was a foe that had been vanquished in the Sand Arena long before his time. It had been left here as a tribute to the goddesses.

Link looked up at the ceiling. It was blocked by the winds above. He knew that without the sandstorm he could be looking up at a narrow hole of sky, which was rumored to be where the goddesses had first entered the Golden Lands. He shook his head and looked around the center of the room. If there was to be a reanimated enemy from his past, it would be here. Link did not understand why there was no illusion sending him back into his memories or why he hadn't come immediately under fire. Was this the one exception specified in the note? Was there to be no battle and simply making it here was the goal?

"LINK!" Navi shouted in terror.

Link looked over in the direction that Navi was nervously flitting away from. He jumped backwards and pulled his sword out as he understood what was going on. Shadows were materializing around the large, half buried skeleton and giving it a psuedo-flesh of black and purple. Its eyes glowed a bright red as it lifted itself upwards. It towered several tens of feet above the hero. He steeled himself against the large size and exhaled. This was exactly what he required with his headache.

The monster stretched its arms out and made a blood-curdling cry. Black figures rose from the ground. Link jumped as he spotted Redead, Gibdos, and Stalfos in the numbers. The wrapped and unwrapped undead bodies turned towards Link, he could feel their freezing stares on him. He avoided their eyes. There was no escaping them. As for the skeletons with shields and swords they slowly walked towards him with their guards raised and ready to attack. Link braced himself for the battle and his mind raced to figure out how to beat whatever it was that he faced.

_Stallord. _The word reverberated inside his mind, as though it came from somewhere not of his conscious, but he had always known the word.

He stepped out onto to the sand and found that it turned black when he stepped on it and swallowed his leg. He jumped backwards. The quicksand was faster then normal. There was no way he could get close enough to the Stallord to injure it.

Again, mysterious, omnipresent words filled his mind. _A rejection of the goddesses. It controls the undead of the world, even though it's flesh has been dead for many long years. I found it to be weak against fire magic. Perhaps this will work the same._

He wondered what was telling him this, but he didn't take long to ponder on it. Keeping his sword out, he pulled the bow off his back and grabbed a fistful of arrows. He circled the Stallord and knocked an arrow after thumbing the string. Flames burst from the tip and he aimed at the Stallord.

_Aim for the eyes. _The voice coaxed him. Link followed its directions and fired the arrow.

It flew straight and buried itself into one of the eye sockets. He didn't see a visible reaction, although at its cry more of the undead soldiers appeared. Link tried ice magic and it had the same affect.

Then Link realized something. The Stallord was a reanimation made by shadows. Fire worked on flesh, but light was best against shadows. He groaned at himself for not realizing it sooner, quickly put the bow on a temporary holder around his waist and fended off several of the Stalfos that had crept closer to him while he had attacked their master.

After the wave was defeated, Link took up the bow, strummed the string with his pinky, and knocked the arrow. The tip shone with a brilliant light that hurt Link's already stinging eyes. He fired and the arrow found its home in the right eye of the Stallord. It cried out again. The swarm of enemies that were around it sunk into the sand and then appeared near Link while even more were summoned.

Link groaned, temporarily belted the bow and fought of the rush of Gibdos, Redead, and Stalfos. It took him several long minutes, but eventually the wave was crushed. He came out with several more injuries, including notable bites on his neck cause by accidentally looking at Redead or Gibdos eyes.

Link sighed, retrieved his bow and fired at the Stallord again. He missed. He fired again and hit his target, the left eye. The Stallord cried out in pain. The swarm of enemies disappeared into the sand and no more appeared. Link wondered if it had been too weakened to continue summoning swarms of undead.

The giant creature reached out its arms and grabbed Link. He was crushed by black shadows that burned his skin. He was thrown into the stone ground. He was left dazed for several moments and could have sworn that he felt his back crack. He stood, grateful that no bones had been broken. He dodged a swipe from one of the hands.

Link took out the bow and knocked an arrow, letting it charge magical energy. He danced around the Stallord's attacks, although not always successful, raised the bow, and promptly fired in a smooth motion. The monster cried out and came at Link with even more vehement attacks.

Link found dodging difficult. It took him nearly his entire quiver to down the Stallord, most of them were misses. After the thirteenth hit, the Stallord arced back as the shadows left it. The monster made one last attack at Link, although he was able to avoid the blow. As the shadows left it completely, the Stallord slumped forwards, skull resting on the edge of the pit. Link collapsed to the ground and panted. He was drained physically and mentally. Link reached backwards towards the potions that he had restocked while in the town and his hand came out wet, covered in red, blue, green, and purple. Link's eyes widened and he quickly undid the strap on his baldric and examined the bottles he kept stored on his back. Shards of glass fell from his shield. Only two of his bottles remained intact. They were a red and a green potion. Link sighed and drank both. He would need to replace those bottles when he got the chance to. He looked at the mess of potion on the back of his shield and decided that it would need to be cleaned before it rusted.

He slowly staggered to his feet and made his way out of the temple. He walked through the desert, making it back to the town quickly given the lack of sand storm.

In the town he cleaned his supplies, replenished his potion and bottle count, and treated his wounds. Then he went to the stables of the inn where Epona was. Once there, he readied Epona and jumped into the saddle. He rode out of the desert and to the southeast. There would be the Holy Site on the River.

* * *

Umbra smiled down at Zelda as he hid the Shadow Orb in his limitless cloak. "Now do you believe me, Princess?"

Zelda shivered in fear. She could not erase the images of what she had seen from her mind. Her eyes watered at what she had been shown. She quickly wiped the tears away.

"That's right, cry. Cry as Impa lies dying after trying to save you. Cry at all the horrors you have seen that you know are true, and you know you are the cause of." His voice lowered. It became seductive, alluring, made her want to believe him, "And cry at the fact that you know that your hero has abandoned you and there is no force to save you from myself or Master Amageten."

She bit her lower lip as her vision blurred with tears. Only a small part of her still cried out that he was lying, that he was tricking her. She had fallen into his web of twisted narrations, tortures, and visions. "Even so, you..." her voice failed her. Umbra had knelt down on one knee to look at her in the face. His eyes frightened her.

"I what, Princess? What about me?" He asked with a voice that had become slippery.

"You cannot make me revive Ganon. I will NOT do that! I could never do such a vile thing!" Her strength came back to her at the revolting idea. "Even if I am the source of so much pain and suffering, I could never cause more by bending to your will!"

Umbra seemed to smile at her in genuine amusement.

"Very good, Princess. I was worried for a moment that you would be too easy to manipulate. But fear not, all of that will change and fade over time." He laughed once he was finished, and the sound sent shivers down Zelda's spine.


	31. Chapter 14 Fates

_**Fates**_

_An unchangeable force that even the golden goddesses cannot control. This force controls all life on the Golden Lands that divided themselves. Their inhabitants believe that the golden goddesses control this force. That's a flattery that they wish was true. Those three look to me for controlling that force. However, even I am not able to control that sea of fog, I can only divine through it and see what it hides. And then, not even that. The inhabitants of the Golden Lands frequently change what it hides. They control their own fates more readily then my sisters or myself can by sheer force of will alone._

* * *

Link pressed onwards for hours. He knew how strongly he was taxing the roan mare that he rode, however, there was nothing to be done about it. Epona, he was sure, was used to the days and weeks of no activity and the short time spans of hardly any rest. As he rode, the lingering pain of his headache faded and his eyes stopped burning from the sunlight.

It was well into the hours of the night by time he made it to the riverbank. He groaned, there was no point in entering the temple until it was dawn. The Holy Sites that praised Faeore and Nayru, the Forest Shrine, Sea Shroud, and Water Gate, relied on the light of the sun to show the way. The Holy Sites that praised Din, the Sand Arena and the Terminian Mines, had their own sources of light buried within to honor her fire element. At night time Nayru's and Faeore's Holy Sites would have no lighting and he gave himself odds of fourteen to one against of his surviving in honor of the strongest challenges he had ever faced.

Many of the creatures and mazes that he had faced in the last few days had made him wish for the ease of challenging Ganon's complexities again. When he had traveled time, there had been no doubt of his victory being the result of his skill; now, he seemed only able to continue by luck and his will to press onwards. The trivialities of two years past were a pittance compared to how his nameless foe had remade the Holy Sites in shadow illusions.

He dismounted Epona and fed her half of the remaining carrots he had for her. The mare munched on them happily out of his hand. After she was finished, Link gently led her closer to the Holy Site with his hand pressed against the back of her neck. Once satisfied that the distance was short enough, Link sat down and motioned for Epona not to run off. She trotted over to the nearby river and drank from it. Link ate half of his supply of dried meat and emptied his water skein. Then he refilled it in the river and lay down on the ground to sleep.

That night his dreams were troubled by visions of two cloaked figures, faces almost completely masked. Zelda sat serenely between the two of them, a multifaceted gem that pulsated calm colors rested in her lap. One of the figures, the one that he had fought on the beach and the one he held responsible for the disturbance in Greater Termina, circled Zelda, taunting, teasing, torturing, and touching her. The other stood by and watched him until he faded from the dream. After a long time passed, the first figure backed away from Zelda and faded away. She held the crystal in her hands. There was a flash of bright light and the princess died.

Link awoke with a start and shook his head.

"Hey, Link." Navi spoke as she floated down onto his shoulders. "Are you alright? You looked like you were having a bad dream."

He looked at her inquisitively and thought out to her, "I thought that you could see my dreams, Navi."

"After the incident at the Water Gate, I've been having more difficulty then usual in reading your thoughts. I can only seem to get your thoughts completely when you direct them to me."

That was a relief, Link thought. Now he could think almost safely. Link looked up at Navi. "It was nothing." He lied to her. "Just something odd that's been bothering me since this entire thing started."

"Hey! Don't lie to me, Link. I might not be able to read your thoughts, but I can tell when you're lying. I know as a fact that your mind is sensitive to the evil that surrounds the world, and that shows itself in your dreams. Remember seven years ago when the Great Deku Tree first sent me to you? You had been having a dream about Ganondorf leaving the castle. And you didn't even know what a castle was then!"

Link sighed. "So? I had a dream because of the evil in the air. What do you want me to do about it?"

"I'd just like you to tell me about it. I'd like to know what's going on."

Link got up and walked off.

"HEY!" Navi exclaimed in indignation. "Where're you going? Aren't you going to tell me?"

"Not now." Link thought back. "And I'm going to the River Guide. The only way to save Zelda is to keep pressing forwards. I'll tell you on the way to the Terminian Mines." He paused. "Does that suit you, Navi?"

"Yes. Alright." She flew after him and rested on his shoulder. "I'll try and help you as much as I can."

Link walked to the River Guide. It was a foreboding tower that sliced through the air. This was the only monument to all of the Golden Goddesses. In a triangle around the tower, each corner a quarter of a mile away, three small statues that were figures of the goddesses. At the top of the tower, it was said, that one would be able to commune with the goddesses themselves and hear their prophecies. The doors were heavy and made of white stone, like the rest of the tower. They opened automatically as Link entered. He felt as anxious about the entrance now as he had two years ago, although the feeling had been magnified by the fact that he knew that this fight would be several times harder then it had been.

Link looked around, took a deep breath and began his climb of the tower. There was no saving grace about the Holy Site. It was large. Had stained glass windows that depicted images of the goddesses. To get to the top was an arduous climb with what appeared to be a limitless number of stairs. He found himself climbing many flights and then having to go back down to get a small item to continue.

In addition there were shadowy wall masters that were nearly impossible to avoid. They absorbed him into the shadows of which they came, all the while feeling crushed, suffocated, and burned, and then dropped him back at the entrance to the River Guide. There were dark red Beamos that made Link feel as though their eye beam was liquid fire. Black Tektites that were immune to his sword strikes and required light arrows guarded every staircase, door, and key.

Link stood at the entrance of the River Guide for the seventeenth time in two hours. He stared upwards towards the top of the Holy Site with a look of deep irritation and reproach. He was covered in what appeared to be whiplashes, but were in fact precision burns from the Beamos. There were several bruises and cuts on his body made by the overpowered Tektites. He was exhausted from the extensive climbs and weakened even more by the Wall Masters that continuously surprised him in the midst of a heated battle.

"Faeore hates me." He thought.

Link set off to go up the stairs once more when he heard the strange voice that had spoken in the Sand Arena. _This River Guide is a mere replica of our Tower of the Goddesses. It is not even half the size of what we built, but it seems many times more complex. However, the principle is the same as what we built, and I know, because I have been inside here once before, that the quickest way to go up is to first head down._

Link stopped in confusion at what the voice had told him. It had not been wrong about the Stallord, so he felt that it would not lead him astray now. He turned around and looked for the trapdoor to the basement. The fourth key to the Gerudo's hideout had eventually been in the basement. He had discovered this after the long climb to the top of the tower. After some looking he found it and dropped down. He looked around and almost immediately wished that he hadn't. The room was filled with hordes of Beamos and Black Tektites.

Link took his sword off of his back reflexively and then he put it away. He first shot each of the Tektites with light arrows. They faded into puffs of black smoke. Then Link focused on the Beamos. He took several more burns that seared into his skin before each had been destroyed in a bomb blast.

In a shadowy corner of the room, a small chest appeared and near it a door materialized, it was chained shut.

Link walked over and opened the chest. He took out the key that was inside it. Then he opened the door. It revealed a room that was filled with a brilliant light. In the center was a circle that was the source of the light, and it formed an expansive pillar of light into the ceiling. Link noticed the circle glowed the same colors as the crystal from his dream and wondered if there was any significance to it.

He walked into the circle and felt his body pulled upwards, as though he was being dragged by the back of his neck. He looked around and saw that he was floating upwards through floors and walls. The enemies that he had struggled with before did not notice him.

It was several seconds before he was at the top of the tower. He sighed in relief at the fact and looked around him. He was in a small room. On one side was a door that led back into the tower. On the other was a door that led outside. The room was circular and was faceted with stained glass windows that depicted the goddesses. Link walked out of the room and found himself on a six-foot wide path that spiraled around the room and upwards towards the peak of the tower. There were columns around all of the sides.

The peak of the tower was a stone arena with five-foot tall walls around it. It was a circle ten feet in radius. The path that came towards the peak was a ramp that gently met the slope of the floor of the peak. There was a hole in the floor for the ramp.

Link came to the top of the tower. The hole sealed itself shut in shadows that contrasted the white stone the tower was made of.

From that closure, a shadow figure emerged. The figure revealed itself to be a black serpentine dragon that looked like it was made of dying embers. Two large wings of ash appeared from it's back. Narrow red eyes glowed in their sockets.

Link pulled off his sword and knew what had to be done. It flew through the air, coming in close to the ground several times. After many minutes it melded into the ground. The white floor turned to black. Link stepped around carefully, wondering what it meant. Then black smoke was recalled to a small area near Link and the dragon appeared again.

Link's eyebrows furrowed. This appeared to be an improved form of Volvagia, a dragon that had plagued the Gorons in Hyrule, however, it behaved as Twinmold, a boss in the Stone Tower in Termina, might. He frowned at the realization. It would be hard to hit while it flew through the air.

_Use my mask_. The voice coaxed him. _With the sword's magic, you should be able to strike your enemy_.

Link pulled out the mask he had gotten in the Forest Shrine and put it on. It was agony in intense amounts as the transformation occurred. Link pulled out the double-helix sword and readied himself. He sent a blast of magical energy at the dragon. It connected and the dragon roared in pain.

From the ground burst pillars of flames that were tipped in black. Link rolled to the side to try and avoid them. Then he noticed the dragon rushing at him. He ducked and raised the sword. It passed straight through the middle of the enemy. Link rolled to the side as another pillar burst forth from the ground.

He sighed as he realized that the counterattacks were not going to end. After he dodged a pillar, he struck at the dragon, hitting it with another blast of magical energy.

In retaliation, the dragon doubled the amounts of the fire pillars. Link had more trouble dodging, although he eventually managed to get in another attack. Again, the amounts of the flame strikes doubled.

Link's eyes widened. There were only inches of space to skirt between now.


	32. Chapter 14 Fates 2

"HEY! Link! The ledges! They're not being touched by the flames at all!" Navi shouted frantically to him.

Link nodded and jumped onto the top of one of the walls. He was uncomfortable with the idea of fighting on the ledges that altered in height regularly. In the five rows of blocks that were placed around the edge to form the rows, the top row was missing half of its number. With every two blocks that were present, there were two that were not.

He exhaled and looked for the dragon. It seemed to be looking for him. Link struck it and it roared in pain. Now the entire arena was ablaze in the strange black-tipped fire. Link carefully walked around the walls, waiting for the dragon to appear out of them.

"HEY! WATCH OUT!" He heard Navi shout from above. Link instinctively jumped backwards, realizing almost too late that he would be jumping to his death. Link reached out his hand desperately and caught the ledge. The dragon shot out from just above him.

Link struck the dragon for the forth time, while hanging from the ledge, praying that this would be the end of the matter. It was not. He groaned and pulled himself back on top of the wall. The dragon was writhing from the previous hit, so he lashed out another strike. While it was paralyzed, he unleashed a vicious series of magical strikes. After twenty more, the dragon was killed. It exploded in a ball of black flames. There was a shockwave that struck Link in the chest. He was sent careening backwards and he landed on his back in the center of the arena as the flames died down.

_Link. Can you hear me?_ A female voice called in the same fashion as the voice that belonged to the mask did.

"Yes." He thought to the voice. "Who are you?"

_I am Faeore. You are my Bearer._

"Bearer?" Link asked tiredly. His exhaustion was beginning to sink in.

_You are not only our Hero, Link, but you are also the one that I have chosen to bear my part of the Triforce. Thus, you are my Bearer. You are also the son of my Herald._

"I've got a lot of ties to you, don't I?" Link inquired, only barely understanding what he was hearing.

_Quite, Hero of Time. I can tell that I was never wrong in naming you my Bearer or making you our Hero._

"Why are you telling me this?"

Because, you've shied away from your duties as your horse does from water, Link. Also, you have a habit of saying that I hate you, while I feel no such thing. I think that you are a very strong individual. That is why you are the one that corrects all of the mistakes in the world, because of your strength.

"My duties?"

_Oh, yes. Your duties as Hero of the Golden Lands. I made the Master Sword and blessed it especially for you, Link. Yet you hid it back in its temple and ran away from the sign that you were the Hero. You also ran from the woman that you are supposed to protect, Nayru's Bearer, the Princess of Destiny, the one we have chosen to lead the Golden Lands. Your duties as Hero have always been to protect Princess Zelda. That is why all these years you have subconsciously thought of her. Although you ran from Zelda, your mind rebelled against the decision, because you knew that it was against your being. That's why you are so selflessly trying to rescue her now, because you know that deep down it is what you must do._

"Can you blame me?" He asked her. He had never held much fear of the Golden Goddesses, nor had he much thought of their being above him. "I had gone from being a child to an adult in what was to me the blink of an eye. It had only been one month since I had been told everything I believed was a lie, and now when I had just started to make sense of the world, I had to start from scratch, again. Then I was nearly killed over matters I barely understood at least ten times. After everything was over, I wanted to stay away so that I could live life the way I wanted to, and maybe had a chance of not having everything I believed in being torn down again."

_I am quite aware of your reasoning, Link. While I understand and do sympathize with you, that has never changed your duties. Being Hero of the Golden Lands is a heavy burden, but I know that you are capable of handling this. Leaving the home of the Triforce, Hyrule, acquitted you of your ties as a Bearer, but you have always been our Hero. The Master Sword is your sign and proof of being our Chosen Hero. If you had the sacred blade, these enemies would be no match for you, Young Chosen One._

"Too bad it's in Hyrule then, huh?"

He could almost sense a motherly smile from the woman. _Oh yes. I will not bring the blade to you. However, Din has agreed to let you use the weapon she designed for the Hero._

"The weapon she designed?"

_Yes. All of us designed a tool for the Hero of the Golden Lands. I made the Master Sword. Nayru created the Mirror Shield. Din made the Light Blade. Nayru's Shield and my Sword are in Hyrule. However, Din left the Light Blade in Greater Termina. Before you go to your final battle, I would implore you to go and get that sword. It was designed for the Hero to use, so it will be immensely powerful in your hands._

"Where is it?"

_Roke will guide you, Link. He will tell you where it is._

"Who is Roke?"

_You have already communicated with him, Chosen Hero. You will know when he tells you. Please listen to him. Now, you must continue onwards. I will transport you and your mare near the capitol of this territory of the Golden Lands. I will also replenish all of your supplies._

Link was aware of a warm embrace. He kept his eyes closed. He smelled fresh flowers and the Kokiri Forest after a warm rain. Whatever held him felt comforting, motherly, natural.

* * *

Link could not have abandoned her, the small voice in the back of her mind said. She did not want to believe Umbra, but his words were so enticing, his voice so sweet, and his speech so believable. Link had left her.

Umbra cursed suddenly. Zelda started and looked at the man of the shadows. He had taken silence several hours ago and had not even moved since and was sitting against the wall.

"What is it, Umbra?"

"Your little hero, that's all. He's been carrying out favors for those young woman he's been spending his time with instead of trying to find you. I'm just trying to kill him and he's making my attempts all look like terrible mistakes on my part."

"Why are you doing that? Link is no longer hindering you, is he?"

"Well, Princess I have a few reasons." Umbra said as he stood and walked over to her. "My first reason is because I simply don't like him. My second is because my master has told me to. My third is as a favor to you, Princess."

"To me? But I do not desire him to die."

"Well, I feel that you certainly should want him dead. You were captured. He's your hero, isn't he? But he's just left you to die, or rot, here with me. While I'm not complaining, I would think you'd want a little revenge on him. So I'm trying to do that for you."

Zelda wanted to retaliate against it, but his words were so enticing. The little voice in the back of her head yelled against what he was saying. She took heart in its retaliation. "I could not want that. Link risked his life on my behalf, and my foolishness, before. I could not have justification in desiring him to die when he might not want to risk his life for me again. I would not be able to blame him."

"You say that, Princess. And you might even think that a little," Umbra replied, his vocie had become gentle, caressing, and it frightened her more than even his absolute rage. He placed a hand on her shoulder and Zelda restrained herself from trembling. "However, deep down you do not feel that. You think him selfish for valuing his life over your own. He's a mere hero, but you are the future ruler of Hyrule. Your life is many times more valuable as his, and you know that. You are quite angry at him on the inside for forgetting that and abandoning you for mere pleasure."

As he spoke, Zelda found herself almost believing him. It was only the small voice inside of her that was slowly being stifled that snapped her out of her hypnosis. "You-" Her voice shrank as he met her gaze with his sinister smirk. "You are very wrong, Umbra. That's not how I feel in even the slightest."

Umbra smiled at her. "I see, Princess. But you retort with much less conviction then you did yesterday, and the day before. I do believe that you're starting to see how right I am. Notice how you've given up on standing for your hero's morals? Because you've seen that they do not, in fact, exist." He brushed her cheek with his thumb. It sent a nervous flighty feeling down her spine. "Soon you'll see how dark your own heart is."


	33. Chapter 15 Lords

_**Lords**_

_Those in the Golden Lands have an odd habit of making hierarchies. They believe that my sisters are at the top tier of existence. After them come their royal families and their prophets, which most are fake. Their nobles are next. After the nobles come the warriors. Then come their workers. _

_While Nayru created the spirit of law in the Golden Lands, she did not design for their to be such a class struggle in her people. As far as She, Din, Faeore, and myself are concerned there is only tier, but several categories. The four of us value life the same, however, we have our Bearers, Heralds, and Heroes. We bless them so that they may help the others that live in the Golden Lands. They are not more valuable then the others, but they are stronger._

_Although it was not intentional or desired, the inhabitants of the Golden Lands give themselves titles. Kings, Princes, peasants, soldiers, and Lords._

* * *

After a great period time Link's eyes opened, long after the scent of the embrace had left him. He heard Epona's soft whinnies and felt her nuzzling his cheek to wake him up. He heard the gentle flutter of Navi's wings and felt her miniscule weight on his chest. Link sighed and sat up, starting Epona and Navi.

"Link! You're alright! That's good. I was worried about you! You just stopped responding to everything after that battle! I wasn't even sure that you were breathing at first!" Link stood up and looked around, ignoring her. "Hey! Are you okay? Link? Can you hear me? Listen!"

Link gently stroked Epona's mane and nodded. "Yes," he thought to the fairy. "I can hear you. And I'm fine."

"Good. So what happened? Did you pass out or what?"

Link checked Epona's saddle bags and found that they were filled. He then examined his gear and found that his supplies had been replenished. His wallet was even filled to double what it had been previously.

"I talked with Faeore."

"WHAT?!" Navi exclaimed in shock and then flew over to him and quietly asked, "Are you sure? The goddess that made the Great Deku Tree herself?"

Link nodded. "She told me some stuff and then said she would transport us close to the capitol city and told me that I needed to get something after I clear out the Terminian Mines."

"Oh, that's good. I was wondering how we got here. It didn't seem like how you were transported after the Forest Shrine." Navi fluttered around in the air and then turned back to Link suddenly. "OH! Before I forget. That Gavin fellow and Ramsay found you. They were concerned, but Gavin had a really important agenda at the castle. Something to deliver to the castle. He said he was sorry, but he didn't have the time to help much, although he did make sure that you'd be alright."

Link nodded. He mounted Epona as Navi flew over to his shoulder and hid under the collar of his shirt so that she wouldn't get left behind by the mare. Epona jumped into a gallop, Link could tell that she had been rejuvenated by Faeore, much like he himself had been.

He decided to head into the capitol city, on the off chance that he might be able to find Gavin and thank him for his help. It was an hour more before he passed through the large stone wall and high metal gates that led into the city itself. Dominating his sight was the castle. It had been built into the mountains that surrounded the northern borders. The castle had at least a hundred floors that gradually receded further into the mountainside to match the slope. It was a truly magnificent sight.

Link rode Epona through the town and found a place to tie her off. He knew that she didn't like it, however, he had to make sure that she would be safe. Link decided that the easiest way to find Gavin might be to look around the castle's walls and see if Gavin was staying around there.

After an hour of fruitless searching the castle's walls, Link scaled one of the walls to see if Gavin was in the gardens. Link's head barely poked above the wall before a guard on a balcony in the wall spotted him.

"HEY! YOU! WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?" He shouted loudly enough to make sure that Link was noticed by everyone in a thirty-foot radius. Which included himself and the guard. The soldier ran over to Link and pulled him up and over to the balcony.

"What were you doing trying to sneak into the castle?"

"Link wasn't trying to sneak in. He was only trying to see if someone was there that he wants to talk to."

"Oh, and who would this be? The king?"

"No. Gavin. He came in for a delivery earlier. Link wanted to speak with him."

"Hmph. I find it hard to believe that he knows Gavin."

"Why, is Gavin someone famous?"

The guard regarded Link and Navi in a form of shock. "You mean that you haven't heard of his legacy as the greatest swordsman in all of Greater Termina? He has a mysterious past, but everyone knows that he is the best fighter Greater Termina could be graced with. None of the guard knows why he doesn't go in and see what's plaguing the Holy Sites."

"Link's been freeing them." Navi replied before Link could tell her not to do so. At the guard's look, Link relented and allowed her relate his story in entirety. "The Holy Sites are cursed by a dark entity that Link's been chasing from Termina for kidnapping the Princess of Hyrule."

"Wait, you're the young man that the King and Queen of Hyrule mentioned?"

"They're here?"

"Yes, arrived yesterday afternoon. I was in the throne room when they arrived, so I heard about how their daughter had been kidnapped, and how a mute young man had gone off to find her."

"Well, they were talking about Link. So will you let him go? He needs to work fast to find Princess Zelda."

"I'm sorry, Sir Link, but we were ordered that if this mercenary be found, we were to bring him to the castle to talk with the royalty of Hyrule and Greater Termina alike."

Link sighed. "If you'll follow me please, Sir Link." The guard said and led Link into the castle. It was a long time before they had climbed the three flights of stairs that preceded the throne room. They walked into the middle of a hot debate, Link saw a vexed King, presumably the leader of Greater Termina, arguing with Gavin.

"I don't care, Gavin Lonette, how much you don't want to pick up the sword again, but we need the Holy Sites purged of what plagues them."

"I'm far too old for this, King Daphnes. If I went in there, I'd likely end up dead and without even so much as putting a dent in the dark shadow the covers them."

The King and Queen of Hyrule stood near their fellow ruler and watched the argument passively. They looked up when Link entered. King Hyrule raised his hand for the two to stop.

Everyone look at Link and the guard.


	34. Chapter 15 Lords 2

"King Harnikan, here is Sir Link, as you requested."

"Ah, very good. Thank you." The guard nodded and walked out of the room. The king walked over to Link and put his hand out to shake. Link took up the offer. "My boy, I was wondering how your quest was going."

"Fine. The Holy Sites won't be much of a problem because Link needs to clear them out to get clues as to where Zelda is. He's already taken care of four of them. The Sea Shroud was already cleared. So he's going to go to the Terminian Mines now, and then he should be able to get Zelda back before too long." Navi responded.

"Very good. Are you expecting to be paid for this?"

Link nearly laughed aloud, but restrained himself. "Link's not a mercenary. He doesn't help people to be repaid. He just likes to help others. This is costing him a lot on supplies, but don't worry about it. Link has more then enough rupees."

"But, dear boy, rupees don't grow off of trees. How do you expect to live if you don't require payment for your services?"

Link smiled. He was right, rupees did not grow on trees. They grew in bushes. "That's Link's concern." Navi paused. "How is Impa doing, last he saw, she was severely injured. Did Bheesty help her at all?"

"Bheesty?" King Daphnes interjected. "You've seen her? And she was in Termina?"

"Yes," Navi responded as Link remembered that she was the prince's cousin. "She came with some of her friends looking for Link to get help with purging the Holy Sites. So did she help Impa at all?"

"Unfortunately, there's not much to be done. She's an old Sheikah, and the injuries are great."

Link sighed, he knew that would be a great blow to Zelda's feelings when she found out. A melody floated through his memories. He looked up at the king. "Could Link see her? He might be able to help."

"I doubt that you could, but you may try."

The King of Hyrule led Link, along with the others, through the castle to a bedroom. Lying still on the bed and unconscious was the elderly Sheikah. Her breathing was shallow. Link walked over to the bed and pulled out his ocarina. He played the melody that had come back to him, it was a gentle song known for healing souls, and he had found out that it was good at restoring vitality and healing physical maladies.

As he played, the burns on Impa disappeared and she seemed to be regaining strength. Link's back was turned to the others.

"Link!" Gavin called out. Link turned around, holding the ocarina to his side. "I didn't know that you could play so well."

"Natural ability." Navi replied simply. "He's been able to play the ocarina ever since he was very young. When he plays, his songs tend to have strange affects on others, always has been that way."

"Boy, where did you get that ocarina?" King Hyrule asked sharply. "That's the Ocarina of Time, is it not? I gave that to Princess Zelda on her fourth birthday. How did you get our family heirloom?"

Link looked down at the ocarina in his hand and noted the gold triforce mark on it. He sighed. There was no avoiding telling the king his history now.

"It was a gift from Zelda. Did she ever tell you about a hero that had saved Hyrule from a great evil seven years ago?" The king and queen nodded. "That was Link. It's very complicated, but he traveled through time to save Hyrule, and only the Sages and himself know of what he did. Darunia, Ruto, Impa, Saria, Nabooru, Impa, and Zelda."

"Yes, that story was backed up on several occasions by various correspondents."

"Well, Zelda gave Link the Ocarina of Time for what he did, and he also needed it to stop the great evil. He left Hyrule afterwards, simply to see if his help was needed in other lands."

"Very well. So who are these children that you grew up with? And how come they couldn't have kidnapped Zelda?"

"Because they'd die if they ever left where they grew up. They're still children also." Navi responded irritably without Link's thoughts. "He was taken into the forest when he

was a baby by his mother during the Great War, who died after getting the Great Deku Tree to let him stay there. He was raised as though he were a Kokiri until Hyrule needed him to save it. I know that Mido wasn't fond of Link when he was younger, but!" Navi paused. "He would never even think of kidnapping anyone. That boy probably still thinks like a ten-year-old bully!"

Link looked casually up at Navi with an inquiring glance. He had not expected her to defend the Kokiri so vehemently, although he would have done the same. He would have defended even Mido. The children of the forest had grown up with him, and he knew that they were incapable of doing what his mysterious foe had. Link reflected over how very, and eerily, knowledgeable this foe was about his past, events that no one save himself and a select few others had any clue to. The fighting style had been much like his own, except it was much stronger and more violent than his own.

"Wait," Gavin said in the shocked silence that had appeared with Navi's shouting, "did she just say you grew up in the Kokiri Forest?"

Link nodded. Navi calmly rested on his shoulder. "Yes. He was only three months old at the time, but he remembers that night vividly. His mother had been attacked and wounded by some intruders, after meeting with his father; she brought him to the Kokiri Forest. It was with her dying breaths that she asked the Great Deku Tree to guard him. The only reason he remembers that is because the Great Deku Tree used Faeore's blessings to turn him into a ten-year-old to fit in with the Kokiri for a while. Ten years later, he had to leave because Ganondorf had a beast kill the Great Deku Tree. He was told to bring the Kokiri Emerald to Princess Zelda, which he did. Then he saved Hyrule at the Princess's request. Any questions?"

"But," Gavin responded, "If you're telling the truth…."

Link nodded. "Yeah. He didn't realize at first, but now he recognizes you. You're the man that talked to his mother that night and told her to flee to the Kokiri Forest."

The older man was overcome. He took a seat in a near by chair with the help of King Hyrule.

"That would explain why your ocarina songs have strange effects," the queen said, "I was childhood friends with your mother. She was a wonderful singer, dancer, and her playing was goddess sent. It's a shame that you didn't inherit her voice."

Link shrugged as Navi spoke. "Yeah, it is. Isn't it?" Link pulled out the strange mask he had found in the forest shrine. "Do you have any idea what this mask depicts?"

King Daphnes seemed to be taken aback. But then he examined the mask closer and nodded. "Yes. That would be the leader of the Oni, he did not speak our language, and so we called him the Fierce Deity, or Kishin. His was a race of dark gods, the antithesis of the goddesses that formed our lands. They were destroyed by our ancestors a very long time ago. Where did you find that?"

"In one of the Holy Sites." Navi said as Link put it back in his bag. Link walked over to the door. "He's got to go now. He'll lead himself out."

"Wait," King Hyrule responded, "Why don't you stay with your father? You haven't seen him in years."

Link stopped walking but did not turn around. He grabbed the handle of the door. "The reunion can wait a little longer. Princess Zelda has to be rescued." With that he opened the door and ran out of the room as fast as he could so as to not be stopped.

He ran down the stairs and through the hallways to the entrance room of the castle. Link had always watched families in some form of wonder. The closest he had were the Kokiri as he grew up. The closest to a father figure was the Great Deku Tree, which would have been more of a grandparent to the Hylian. He didn't remember his parents very well, so he had not been attached to them. Finding out that Gavin was his father had awaked his ardent desire to have some form of a normal background.

Link knew that he could not stay and achieve that desire. For if he stayed, he might not have wanted to leave. And he wanted to save Zelda. More then he had wanted a father as he had looked at life outside of the forest and watched other parents with their children. More then anything, he wanted Zelda to be safe. To that end, he could not stay a moment longer and talk with his father.

He wound through the city and found Epona. He untied and mounted the mare. Then he led her out of the town and towards the Terminian Mines. Navi nestled between his shirts and looked up at the chin of her ward. She could see the determination in his eyes and kept silent, trying to tune into his thoughts.

* * *

"What do you mean, 'How dark your own heart is'?" Zelda cried out indignantly. She stood up, bumping the pedestal that the crystal lay on. Umbra rushed over and straightened it before the crystal could fall to the floor. Zelda saw some of the finer details of his face for only a fraction of a second before the shadows covered his face from the warm light the crystal emitted. He stepped backwards away from the crystal.

She was momentarily silenced. He had a strong jaw and a firm mouth. Something weaker in her had cried out when the features had been covered again. Something stronger in her denounced the flighty feelings that had risen in her gut at the glimpse of his face. Something even stronger ignored those petty conflicts and examined his behaviors. The crystal could not fall to the ground, Umbra's quick actions told her that. She stood with her hand on the pedestal, eyeing Umbra warily.

"What would happen if the pedestal tipped over and the crystal hit the floor, Umbra?"

Umbra stood there calmly. She could see the sinister curl of his lips. "Nothing."

"Then why did you rush so quickly over to it to make sure that it didn't fall when I bumped it?" Zelda took his silence as a triumph of her own deduction. Zelda fingered the crystal onto the floor gently. It dropped to the ground and she was cast in the shadow of the pedestal's stand.

She immediately realized her blunder as she was no longer protected by the circle of light the crystal projected. Zelda wanted to go and grab the crystal, but found herself unable to. Umbra had leapt at his opportunity and had pressed her against the pedestal.

The anxiety that weighed heavily in her mind dropped to the pit of her stomach and she gasped at his sudden nearness.

"I'll tell you exactly what I meant by that, Princess." He whispered to her. His breath was intoxicating and she got the impression that his face was getting closer to hers. With a sudden clarity, she realized what he was doing and was immediately afraid.

At the last he pulled away and sat her on the pedestal. He flicked his wrist and the crystal leapt onto her lap. A small part of her cried out in remorse as her heart raced, she felt as though it had crawled into her throat. She was left wondering why she was so nervous.

He laughed at her. "Do you see now, Princess? Or must I show you more proof of what I claim?"

Zelda stared at him as warm feelings flooded into her body from the crystal.

"Yes. You must, Umbra."

"Very well then. As you wish, Princess." He bowed to her and straightened, walking towards her.


	35. Chapter 16 Depths

**Depths**

_There are many varied uses for the term depths. The depths of hell. Depths of Despair. Depths of suffering. Depths of the earth. While the meaning of these uses vary, the word itself does not. It is the deepest part of whatever it is the depths of. Mines are deep, but by far, they are not considered depths of the earth._

* * *

Link entered the Terminian Mines several hours later. The lighting was dim at best. They had been carved into the mountains near an active volcano. Magma was running through the rock walls of the rooms in the mines, offering a red light and sweltering heat. On the walls were torches covered in a slowly burning pitch to augment the light on the platforms were the magma's glow did not reach.

There was one thing that bothered Link about the Terminian Mines as he leaned over the edge of a walkway to examine the magma flowing below him. He had dealt with the heat on several occasions before, he had even gone through the mines once, they were a strong source of diamonds and other precious stones, so the Gerudo had taken over the place two years prior. It was not the imminent doom that awaited him should he misstep that bothered him. The fact that the lava was flowing and radiated its heat and light did not bother him. He was not phased when he saw threw a chunk of stray metal that was abandoned in the mining process into the lava and watched as it melted. He was bothered by the fact that it did all of this while being perfectly black.

Link knew that when magma cooled it became solid rock, sometimes porous and sometimes brittle. It was always black when it cooled, never before. He had been shown this by some grateful mine workers when he had gotten the Gerudo out of their workplace. He was concerned about the properties of the magma, as it was not solid and it was black.

Link backed away from the magma and quietly accepted this as the work of his mysterious foe. He sighed, everything about this man was black. It was eerily dark, and reminded him of the blackest nights when the sky was covered by storm clouds before the lightning broke out.

"That is kind of odd." Navi agreed with Link. "Black magma that isn't cool. Makes you wonder, doesn't it?"

Link nodded, he wondered how strong his foe was, if he could change the properties of magma. He sighed, there was nothing he could do about the strange magma. The hero merely went through the puzzles of the temple figuring out the complexities that had been designed to specifically challenge him. Flames that were ignited by the magma touching volatile substances that were in the walls burst out at Link randomly. The flames had the same color as the magma, they too had been tainted by his mysterious enemy.

It was nearly at the end of the day when Link neared the source of the curse plaguing the Holy Site. He stood there with his sword out, panting from exhaustion. His body was slumped forwards, the shield on his arm was the only thing holding him up. He was covered in burns that he had received from the black flames that spouted at random intervals. There had been more of the augmented Beamos, his body was covered in small burns from them.

Link prayed and hoped that the final enemy he would face in here would not be as fearsome as the force he had just beaten.

An Dark Knight clad in black armor had blocked his way. It held a large axe and attached to its side was a scabbard of a sword as large as the Great Fairy's had been. Link had walked around the still enemy to examine it before he swung and woke it from its slumber.

The Dark Knight had hefted its axe and swung at Link with it using a celerity he had not thought possible in that armor. Even worse, Link realized when the axe grazed his torso, was the fact that the weapon was super heated. He was grateful as this meant that his wounds did not bleed, but it was an explosion of agony when the axe's blade made contact with him.

To kill the creature Link knew that he needed to knock the armor off. So he had done that as quickly as he could. When the armor had fallen, Link had wished he had tried to figure out another way to slay it. The Dark Knight had become much faster than Link was in his current state. It was only with enough distance that he had been able to bring his shield up to block its sword strikes. The creature had thrown away the cumbersome axe when the armor had been destroyed. Link had barely been able to roll to the side to avoid the projectile.

Instead it used its large and slender sword, which gave it even greater mobility. The sword to was super heated. It had taken Link ten long minutes to decide to use his bow to hit the knight in the eyes to temporarily stun it and go in for a sword strike. Five more minutes saw the knight dead, but Link gravely injured. Even with a red potion and a bottled fairy, he was still heavily injured.

Link walked through the door and found himself in a large room. He did not like the fighting conditions at all after he glanced around it. The room was shaped like a dome. The center of the floor was gone, revealing the magma flow below. There was a narrow strip of rock that hugged the wall. If Link fell there was only six inches to go before hitting the magma, so there was no saving him if he went flying from a hit the wrong way. The advantage was entirely taken from Link and given to whatever he faced.

A creature formed from the magma, it rose from the center, standing three times Link's height, and it was still emerged to its waist. It had three large and wicked horns. The magma that was oozing off of the creature ignited with some substance on its skin into streams of black fire that covered its body.

Link backed against the wall and looked up at Navi, who was frequently a good source of battle tips.

"I'm sorry, Link. I can't figure out a way to fight this thing, I don't even know what it's called."

The beast swung at Link. He tried to predict the movement and rolled to the side. He was whiffed by the black flames. He suddenly had no feeling on the skin of his left cheek. He kept his face neutral, knowing that moving his mouth would cause him pain if the blackened skin was chipped in any way.

Link quickly figured out the pattern to the creatures moves and completely dodged the next several blows. The walls and floor were melting as the creature hit them, so he realized he was losing ground to walk on, rapidly. He need to quickly come up with a plan to destroy the creature he faced.

_Staldrae, a damned beast that the goddesses condemned eons ago. My kind fought and destroyed this creature. To kill it, we required ice magic. That was when it was made of magma and fire, not this new substance._

Link's right eyebrow twitched as the deep baritone voice returned to him. He wondered if it could be trusted and decided that there was nothing to lose in listening to it. The last time that voice had suggested magic, he had needed light arrows. Link pulled the bow off of his back, quickly strummed the string with his pinky, and fired at the head of the beast. The flames disappeared and it froze. Link wondered what he needed to do to hit it and has he pondered the creature roared and came back to life.


	36. Chapter 16 Depths 2

Link continued to dodge more of the attacks and fired his bow again. This pattern continued until Link noticed that the black magma had froze too. He threw a rock onto the pool and watched as it skipped along the surface and gently rested on the pool until the creature started moving again.

The next time that Link froze the Staldrae, he tentatively walked onto the pool, found it as hard as stone. He got within four feet of the beast, unleashed a magical attack by quickly charging up his sword and ran back to the safety of the path. Although Link had come in a full circle around the path, the melted rock from the beginning of the fight was cooled.

Link also tried shooting the beast while it was frozen and found that the arrows bounced harmlessly of its hide. It took several more cycles of the hit and run tactic that Link employed by freezing it, hitting it with his sword and running back before the magma became a liquid again for Link to finally be victorious.

The creature roared as it unfroze from the last hit Link had delivered. The Staldrae shriveled as it was destroyed by its own monstrous heat and disappeared in a puff of smoke. Link sat back on the path and rested. He needed to get the injury on his face tended too, potions never cured such severe burns. He knew that it was dangerous to leave it untended, he had suffered from an illness that had left him near death whenever he had received such burns in the past and not taken care of them properly.

_Link…_ the deep voice from before called out to him.

"Yes?" He thought back.

_There is a magical technique for the hero of the goddesses that can heal any injury, including his own._

"Aren't you the spirit of that mask, the leader of those dark gods, the Fierce Deity?"

He heard the voice break into a fit of laughter. Link paused, wondering if he had said something stupid. _I'm sorry, Link. _The voice said after a while. _I had just thought that the Chosen Hero of the goddesses would be able to see through such deceptions. My people were no dark gods, nor the antithesis of the goddesses. In fact my people were the opposite. We brought their will into the Golden Lands before you Hylians were civilized. But, your kind banded us as such and slaughtered us all. Since the goddesses didn't want us to kill the Hylians, we didn't fight back._

"I understand." Link knew that the voice of the mask was not lying. "So what are you called, if not Fierce Deity?"

_You may call me Roke. I am the original Hero of the Golden Lands, Leader of the Oni. In your tongue, my name would translate into Link._

"What?" Link asked, taken aback.

_Our language was different than the Hylians, hence your misunderstanding of us. We knew what you said, but could not speak your language. My name was Roke among my people. In your language, my name would translate to Link._

"But, that's my name."

_It's something about the heroes that the goddesses choose. We're the link between them and the people and other such things. I didn't pay attention to that part, their symbolisms were for Tiza. Her name would have been Zelda, and she, like your princess, was Nayru's bearer._

"I get it. So, what's that technique, Roke?"

_I can't teach it to you until you reach our old shrine in Greater Termina, just below the lake there. Din's Light Blade also resides there._

"Won't do me much good. I need to take care of this now."

_I understand, then do what you must before we get there._

Link's conversation was cut off by a sinister laugh. He stood up and held his blade at the ready.

"Calm down, oh eager hero." A twisting voice said. Link recognized it as the one that belonged to his foe. "You wouldn't stand a chance against me anyways. I see that you beat my challenges, so I guess I'll be generous enough to reward you with a clue as to where your princess is."

There was a long pause.

"Ready yet? I won't repeat it, and I think that you need to pay complete attention in your exhausted state. Here you go: The crystal of time resides within the tower. Below ground in the darkness it gathers power. Four more days before life turns sour."

Link blacked out as he felt the shadows wrap around him. He found himself outside the mines. It was morning and Epona stood nearby, grazing on some grass. He groaned at the riddles that he found himself deciphering. He hadn't even fully understood the first set of directions and now he had a bit of poetry to comprehend. Link mounted Epona and rode to a town south of his current location. From there he planned to go get Din's Light Blade and figure out the riddle on the way.

* * *

Zelda sat silently near the pedestal that held Lei's crystal up. She was bathed in its colored light, but it did not penetrate the darkness that Umbra had cast upon her. His shadowed eyes had destroyed her will. The darkness that cloaked him had shriveled up her courage. His honeyed words had cloyed her rebuttals.

She knew that he was in the room with her, but she no longer cared. He would not harm her. With her eyes cast to her knees, he could not look at her. With the crystal above her, he would not come near her. She was safe from him. The only weapon he had was his tongue, but he had used up even its usefulness. She knew that he was here now only as a formality and to avoid the light of the rooms above.

"So, Princess, any questions, comments, or concerns?"

"None, Umbra."

"Good. Keep it that way." He said silently as he grinned in his triumph. He had finally convinced her that this was what she wanted. Ganondorf's revival was her true desire.


	37. Chapter 17 Shrines

**Shrines**

_Shrines are similar to temples. They are made as sacred places to honor things. Shrines are considered to be old. Shrines have an archaic décor that is intricate. The themes in them are both understated and present in every room._

* * *

It took Link several hours to get to the nearest town. It was nearing midday when he dismounted Epona and sent her off to graze in the fields. She whinnied, took a look at Link, and trotted off to find some grass to eat.

Link walked into the town and was met by several strange glances due to the large burn on his face and the other minor injuries that were scattered over his body. When he reached the town square, he found a woman that was standing off to the side, watching her children play in a group of their peers.

"Excuse me, ma'am," Navi called out. The woman looked over at Link and jumped back at his appearance. "Do you know where a healer is?"

She straightened herself and nodded. "Oh, yes. You're in luck, the Prince's cousin, Bheesty just came into town this morning. They'll be leaving in a few hours to reach the capitol city, but I'm sure she'll be glad to help you. She's staying in that inn over there." The woman pointed out a building on the opposite side of the square.

Link nodded. "He says thanks." Navi told the woman.

Link jogged off, all of his things clattering as he ran and attracting the attention of the children. They looked at him eagerly, but continued to play once he passed.

"Hey, do you think Phlo will be with her?" Navi asked Link.

Link shuddered at the thought of seeing Phlo right now, he knew that the Prince's cousin would lecture him on both his etiquette and lack of regard for his safety. "I don't know." He thought to Navi.

Link opened the door to the inn and walked inside. The innkeeper looked up at Link and gasped. She pushed strands of dark hair out of her face and examined him.

"Can I help you?" She asked after a length of time. Link nodded.

"Yeah. He'd like to see Bheesty, if he can."

"Oh, I don't know if you can." She said as she warily stood on edge, noticing the weapons Link carried.

"Hm? Who would like to see me?" A light voice called. Bheesty walked into the lobby, followed closely by Aeon and Phlo. She pushed her blue hair back and looked at the innkeeper without spotting Link.

"He would, ma'am." She said and pointed at the young hero.

"Oh please," Bheesty lightly chided the innkeeper, "Call me Bheesty. I have no need of such formal titles." She looked over at Link and gasped, placing her hands over her mouth. "Link!" She cried and ran over to him. Aeon and Phlo followed her as well.

"Come with me, quickly, please." She said and tugged on his arm. Link followed her pulling to a room upstairs. She sat him on a chair and pulled out her golden harp. It seemed to have strings of silver.

Bheesty sat on a chair in front of him and played a small song on her harp, it was similar to the tune Link had used to cure Impa. She placed the harp on the table to her right and reached out hands, which glowed blue, to Link's face. The burn's receded and left him with a barely visible scar. Then she moved on to the other wounds that littered his body.

"I'm afraid I can't get rid of that scar, Master Link." Link shrugged, slightly irritated by the form of address, but he passed it off. It didn't matter much to him right now. She asked, "So, how did you get such grievous injuries? I pray it wasn't at the Water Gate, for you were there several days ago."

Link shook his head. "No. He was in the Terminian Mines yesterday. The beast that was the source of the curse upon that Holy Site is what did that to him. He thought to seek a healer in town as he needs to go this way and potions wouldn't heal that."

"That's correct. I am glad that you thought of that. Where are you headed now?"

"He's going to a place he heard about near the lake. He thinks something might be there to help him."

"I see. Very well then. I won't hinder you. I understand that your recklessness must be cause by your concern for Princess Zelda and an extreme time limit."

Link nodded, grateful to not be lectured. He stood and made to leave. He thought about something and turned back to Bheesty. She knew a lot about the lore of Greater Termina and Hyrule.

"Yes, what would you like, Master Link?"

"Link would like to know if you ever heard of a crystal with great strength and power that gathers over time."

"Oh yes." She said politely. "It is said to have been fashioned by Lei, the Goddess of Time. No one has ever seen it, and there isn't much to be said about it. But I can tell you what I do know.

"When the Golden Lands were first made, all of the goddesses fashioned three objects. One was a weapon, another an item of use, the last an instrument. I'm sure you know of the items of use. Each of us have one. You have Faeore's Robe, the celestial object that allows you to traverse any terrain. I have Nayru's Guidance, it gives me the ability to heal. Phlo carries Din's Blades, able to cut through any material. And Aeon has that crystal, which allows her to see through any illusion, without magical power. The instruments are the Wind Waker, an instrument to conduct winds, Flame Destroyers, tambourines that create a destructive fire, Harp of Light, granting the ability to heal and control water, and the Ocarina of Time, an instrument to control time.

"The weapons are the Master Sword, a blade that can only be wielded by a hero of immense courage, the Mirror Shield, the item that reflects everything like the surface of the water, The Light Blade, a weapon that like fire will destroy any shadow, and Lei's Crystal. It is said to wield a terrible power over time and fate. It is said to be able to bring the dead back to life, at the cost of the wielder's life. Its power is said to become strongest when it is held in darkness for long periods of time. The truth in that, I do not know. It has never been seen since the day the goddesses created the Golden Lands."

Link nodded. "He says thanks for the information, though. That clears some things up."

"You are welcome, Master Link. Do you require anything else?"

He shook his head and waved to Phlo and Aeon before leaving the room. He walked down the stairs and out of the inn. Link left the town and called Epona to him. He mounted the mare and rode off towards the lake. It took him the rest of the day to get to the next town. He arrived in the early morning so he merely made a camp at the outskirts of the town and rested for a few hours.

In the morning, Link got up and went into town. He got some dried meat, more carrots for Epona, and some other sundry items. When he was finished refilling his supplies, Link left the town and filled Epona's saddlebags. After he did that, he mounted the mare once again and rode to the forest south of the lake.

At the forest's edge he sighed and dismounted Epona. The mare could not get through the tangled brush, so he took off some of the saddlebags that he thought he might need before allowing her to run off. Burdened with the extra weight, Link pushed his way into the forest.

It was dark in the forest; he was barely able to see the sky through the canopy. Link found himself having to cut a path through the forest many times. By the time night was falling, Link broke through a line of shrubs and low trees into a large clearing. Link stared at the visage he was greeted with.

In the clearing stood a large, low, and sprawling white marble building. It was covered in vines, but the forest did not seem to dare to grow closer to the shrine. Gardens that looked like the might once have been orderly were run through with weeds and strong flowers. The red rays of the sun glinted off of elegant stained glass windows. Through the windows Link could see that there were torches that were lit.


	38. Chapter 17 Shrines 2

The Hero of time walked forwards and entered the building. How long had this shrine been hiding in the forest? He looked at the torches, there was no ash under them, nor was there a source for the flame. Had they been burning ever since it had been abandoned? There were tapestries hung over the walls between the glass windows. He looked at them and saw that they joined with the stained glass in depicting room-sized murals of the goddesses and everything that they had created. Nothing was covered and dust, it looked as though it were use frequently.

There were statues delicately carved in the walls and up from the floor. Nothing in the shrine looked in any form of disrepair. It seemed as though it was in a state of constant maintenance.

"Roke?" Link called out in his mind. "Is this your people's shrine?"

_Yes._ The voice answered him. _We imbued it with the magical blessings the goddesses had given us so that it would never fall into shambles._

"That's interesting." Link responded. He looked around the room and saw several doors. "So where is the Light Blade?"

_I left it to Krod to hide before our fall. There should be no monsters or locked rooms. It will only be a matter of looking around for it._

Link groaned and went to the nearest door. He explored the shrine and looked in every room three times. It was the middle of the night by the time he found the Light Blade, tucked away in a pile of objects. Link sighed when he saw the hilt and pulled it out.

The blade was made of pure silver and a gentle white fire coated it. The guard and hilt were made of copper and was inlaid with blood rubies that seemed to have fire in their depths. Staring at them, he remembered the Terminian Mines and the magma that flowed through them. Link felt a torrent of power while holding onto the hilt of the sword.

Link sighed and reached into the pile, searching for the sheath to the sword. He found it and yanked it out with such force that he was sent flying backwards. He looked at the sheath and saw that it looked exactly like the Master Sword's, from what he remembered, save for the fact that it was red and yellow instead of blue and yellow. He quickly took his old sword off and attached it to one of the saddlebags he had taken with him. He attached the new sword to his baldric and replaced the leather strap around his torso.

Link stood up and thought out to the spirit of the mask, "Roke, you were going to teach me a magical technique?"

_Yes. Go to the room with the large tapestry of the goddesses looking over my people._

Link walked out of the room he was in and went to the opposite side of the temple to go where he was directed. He walked in and looked around. This was empty of anything beyond the tapestries and a pedestal in the center, so he had only briefly scanned it once.

_Place my mask on that pedestal._

Link did as he was told and a light blue mist came from the mask. It spilled over the floor and came halfway up his calves. The mask rose from the pedestal as it was surrounded with a white light. A figure formed in an ethereal form, Link could still see through the apparition. The mask half phased from existence and Link saw the towering form of Roke standing on the pedestal, he held the double helix sword in his hand, the mist seemed to steam up from its wickedly sharp edges. Link stared at the pure white eyes and was in awe of the immense power he felt looking upon him. Link understood why the Hylians had mistaken the Oni for dark gods; he might have been trembling if he had any less mettle.

_"Link,"_ Roke said as he lightly jumped off the three foot pedestal and walked towards the living being, _"are you ready for my training? It will encompass more then that technique I mentioned before."_

Link nodded. He had two days left before the time mentioned. "Just one thing," Navi spoke for him, "The tower that was mentioned in the riddle: 'The crystal of time resides within the tower.' Do you know what tower was meant? Was it the River Guide?"

_"No. The tower mentioned is our Tower of the Gods. Tiza had the foresight to place Lei's Crystal within those sacred halls, so that its dark power might not be unleashed. It worked well for several hundreds of years."_

"So, where is that?" Navi asked.

_"In Hyrule. In the center of the Golden Lands. We placed it between three triangular mountains that Din formed."_

Link was startled. He couldn't make it to there in four days, let alone two.

_"Worry not, young Hero of Time."_ Roke said, _"We built a magical system that would take us from one site to the other. Only we knew how to use it, that is why your foe has not discovered this place yet. Train for one day and then rest for the next. After that, go save the Princess of Destiny."_

Link nodded and drew his sword. "He says he's ready for your training, Roke." Navi said.

_"Very well then."_ Roke stood and readied his transparent sword. _"Come at me."_

Link sheathed his sword over a day later, sweat dripped from his forehead. He sat back on the ground.

_"That took longer then I meant it to. But now I feel you are prepared for whatever challenges await you. Link, when you desire to leave, turn this pedestal to your left half of the way, then rotate it completely in the opposite direction. Then a quarter of the way, again in the opposite direction. Then stand on the pedestal when the light appears on it. You will be taken to the very bottom floor of the Tower of the Gods. There should be Lei's Crystal, and with any luck, your Princess."_

Roke jumped back onto the pedestal. He turned to face Link as the mist retreated, the mast began to become solid again, and his figure faded._ "Link! Don't go until your body is recovered. It is dangerous and deadly to go into battle exhausted. You'll have time if you sleep now."_ Roke disappeared and the mask clattered to the top of the pedestal.

Link sat back against the pedestal and closed his eyes to sleep. His dreams were plagued by visions like he had before the River Guide, but he did not wake until ten hours had passed.

When he awoke, he leapt to his feet and immediately followed the directions that Roke had given him after snatching the mask up. He could feel that the magical properties of the mask had been drained. Magically imbued masks were heavier then regular ones. He could no longer use the mask to transform. As Link pushed the pedestal, grunting with the effort, he figured that with all of the new sword techniques Roke had taught him, he would be all right.

The top of the pedestal lit up as Roke had told him it would. He climbed up and felt himself transported.

* * *

The doors of the room Zelda had been kept in burst open, the room flooded with light. Umbra retreated to the back of the room. Zelda merely stood. In the doorway was Amageten.

"Well, are we ready, child?" He asked as he walked towards her.

With the light Zelda felt some of her strength return to her. She felt enough resolve to deny him what he wanted. At once a hand was around her waist and the crystal in front of her, offered on a pale palm.

"Isn't this what you wanted?" She heard Umbra ask her. "Ganondorf's revival, and the destruction of those people that are enjoying themselves while you were kept here in the dark?"

At the sound of his voice, the feel of him near her, and the reminder of his presence, his spell was cast over her again. Although it had left with the entrance of his master, Umbra had replaced it in an instant.

"I…"

Umbra lifted his arm from her waist and used it to lift up her hand. He placed the crystal in the appendage and closed her hand around it.

"Go on, you know you…" She felt his smirk form near her neck. She shivered and then looked around the room, wondering what had happened. The pedestal that the crystal had been kept on had lit up brightly, sending a column of bright light to the ceiling of the room. Umbra didn't move at the light and she heard him chuckle as a figure formed in the light.

"Ah, Link. I was wondering if you were going to show up." Umbra said menacingly as the pillar faded and the Hero of Time stood there. He looked over at Umbra and glared, reaching up for his sword. Zelda was startled. Umbra had lied to her, and she had believed him. She was indignant with rage and silenced by her anger.

"Umbra! What is the meaning of this? Why didn't you kill him?"

Umbra let go of Zelda for an instant to bow at Amageten. "Oh, I tried. He's just far too lucky for my traps, I suppose. Do you want me to take care of him now?"

"No, Umbra. You're obviously too incompetent for this. Take Zelda away from here. I shall deal with him and then we shall continue as planned."

"Very well, Master Amageten." Umbra sneered the last word, grabbed Zelda, and faded into the shadows.


	39. Chapter 18 Betrayals

Enjoy that last chapter? Well, here comes another. Hey, anyone enjoying the history lessons?

_**Betrayals**_

_Betrayals, mortals are well known for them. The ancient betrayal of the Oni by the other creatures of the Golden Lands. The betrayal of old times, where the Sheikah were betrayed by the people that they served. But betrayals are only considered that to certain people._

_The Oni had felt betrayed, although the ones that "betrayed" them felt that they were liberating themselves from a dark mastering force that desired their destruction. That was our folly, for making the Oni so truly frightening in appearance. The Sheikah had not been betrayed by the royal family. Instead, the royal family had been required due to the circumstances of the war they were in to look as though they were betraying that ancient tribe. They apologized for their actions at the end of the war and explained themselves. However, that was after it had been turned into lore and they had changed the symbol they bore._

* * *

Link jumped off the platform, anger rising in his chest. Zelda had been right there, but she had been taken from him. He was relieved only by the fact that this Amageten had said that the process would not continue until after the battle, providing of course that he defeated Link.

Amageten raised his hand and the torches in the room blazed up, driving away all the shadows in the room. Link drew the Light Blade and turned to face him.

The old man pushed the hood off of his head and revealed a wrinkled face with maliciously glinting dark eyes. His gray hair was only a thin fog on the top of his head. The skin seemed to sag off. Link was still on guard. He could feel the immense evil in this man's soul, although it was nothing near Ganon's, and the power that his aged body held. He pulled his shield off of his back and stood at the ready for battle.

Amageten lifted up a hand and a spell gathered at the tips of his fingers, it was dark magic. When it was released bolts of dark magic followed Link as he dodged. There were five of them, one for each finger.

Link twirled around, praying that the magic energies would eventually run out. When they didn't, Link thought to block them with his shield. Which he did. A bolt bounced off, flew several feet backwards, and turned back to try and hit him again.

Link walked backwards and fell over a loose brick in the floor. He flung his arms back to try and catch himself, and wound up only discarding his shield. As a bolt came in to hit Link, he raised his sword to try and block it. The magic disappeared as it touched the white flames. Link rolled to the side and blocked more of the attacks with his sword.

When the attack had been vanquished, Link kicked himself mentally for forgetting about the Light Blade's specialty, destroying any shadow. He ran and picked up his shield off of the floor.

Amageten raised his hand again and threw a blast of fire at Link. Link used his shield to reflect it back at the old man. The blast of fire was repelled off of an invisible barrier that the wizard had formed around himself. Link glared at the wizard as he tried to figure out a way to attack the old man.

As Amageten raised his hand at Link again, this time charging what appeared to be electrical energy, the hero rushed at him and swung his sword. The blade slid off of the barrier that had repelled the reflected fire blast. Link was barely able to block the magical attack with his shield.

Link had to dodge the next series of attacks as he tried to formulate a plan. He wondered if any of the techniques that he had recently learned would be of any help to him. Link bent low after he reflected an attack into the ground on the opposite side of the room. As Amageten charged his next attack, Link prepared himself.

Amageten chose to hurl a large ball of light energy at Link. Link swung, sending it back at Amageten with the blunt side of his blade. He then rushed in, knowing that the reflection would not do anything.

When he was five feet from the wizard, Link leapt up into the air, curling and rotating. While in the air, Link struck at the top of Amageten's head with his sword. He landed crouched on the ground. Link stood, twisted to the other direction and thrust his sword forward. All of his attacks were deflected, but he heard a cracking sound as the barrier began to break.

Link grinned and swung as hard as he could at Amageten while the wizard turned to face him. The barrier shattered like glass and the magical attack Amageten had been charging was dispelled by his shock and horror. The wizard raised his hand and a shadow monster formed in front of Link while he backed away.

Link parried the shadow's attack and hit it with his shield. While the shadow stumbled backwards, Link ran it through and then sliced its head off. He then rushed at Amageten and swung with his sword. Link saw a flash of white and felt his attack slide off of the barrier Amageten had reformed.

Link narrowed his eyes and jumped backwards. He lifted his shield to block an ice attack. It hit the ground and a field of ice spread from where the attack hit the ground. He stayed away from the frozen circular fields. He ran around the field and towards Amageten. The wizard warped to another part of the room.

Link frowned. He twirled the sword in the palm of his hand and swung it at the wizard. A blast of magical energy raced from the tip of the blade as he swung. It hit the barrier and Link saw it press the barrier inwards before the barrier broke.

Link rushed at the wizard again, but Amageten formed another shadow to block Link as he backed away and formed another barrier. Link felled the shadow in two strokes. He then focused his attentions back on Amageten and reflected an electrical attack back at the wizard.

The wizard warped to dodge the redirected the attack. Link rolled to dodge a blast of fire that melted the floor. He ran towards his foe and the circled him, jumping to make sure that the wizard couldn't turn fast enough to follow him. When he was near his foe's back, Link rolled, twisted, and sprang upwards. As he did so, he lashed out with his sword.

Link turned on his heels and jumped upwards, rolling in the air once more and lashing out in mid-jump to hit the wizard's head, if the barrier had not been present. He landed on the ground and ran forwards, he felt the electrical energy of the wizard's attack strike where he had been and felt the hair on the back of his neck stand on end.

The wizard warped around the room. Link turned around to find his opponent and once he did, ran around to dodge another attack. The wizard had sent another blast of dark magic at Link, this time there were ten bolts.

Link turned with his back against his wall. While using his shield to deflect some of the attacks, he destroyed others with his sword. When he was sure that all ten bolts had been destroyed, Link looked around for the wizard again, this time only barely managing to duck completely behind his shield.

He felt the heat of the wizard's attack be spread over the stone floor and wall around Link. They did not melt from the heat, but Link didn't feel like touching the stone. Instead he leapt over the field of heated stone surrounding him and rushed at the wizard as he prepared another blast of light energy.

When the blast was fired, Link hit it with his sword while running, knocking the blast back at Amageten. He saw the barrier shatter. This time as he came in for a hit, Amageten raised a barrier of black magic. Link cut through it, and found that the wizard had warped to another side of the room.

Link glowered at the wizard and decided to use the last technique that he had learned. He put his shield on his back and rolled to dodge an ice attack. The wizard warped and Link only turned to find him. Once he had done so, Link tightened his grip on his sword and lifted up his right hand, which he had balled into a fist.

The mark of the triforce on his hand became visible over the gauntlet. He swung his hand, while uncurling it, at the wizard. A golden light jumped from his hand and formed around the wizard in the shape of the triforce, with Amageten in the center. Light energy flickered between the pieces of the triforce, holding the wizard in place.

Link rushed at Amageten and swung his sword once, twice, three times. The barrier broke. He swung again, delivering a mortal blow upon the wizard. The triforce around the wizard faded and he fell to the ground.

Link stood above him, twirled his sword and sheathed it. He looked at the wizard in anger.

"Curse you, Umbra." The old man coughed. "You planned for this."

Link was about to have Navi inquire about that when the wizard died. With Amageten's final words lingering on his mind, Link walked out of the room.

"Hey." Navi said as she flew closer to him. "Do you think that Umbra's still in this tower somewhere?"

Link shrugged. "No harm in looking." He thought to her and walked around the hallway he had found himself in. Link located a staircase and began his climb.


	40. Chapter 18 Betrayals 2

Zelda found herself in a circular room. There were high walls with many windows. Sunlight streamed in through the windows. Umbra had retreated to the side of the room with a door in it. The shadows intensified and he stood there, watching Zelda.

She stared at him in anger.

"You lied to me!" She exclaimed.

"You believed me." He replied calmly. Zelda shuddered at his voice. Her fear of him was intense, although his spell had been broken.

Zelda stared at Umbra, and he met her angry gaze with a calm look. She could see the sinister smile on his face.

"You acted as though you expected him to come." She said upon a realization.

"I did much more then that, Princess. I knew that he was going to come. And more then that, I know that he will defeat and kill Master Amageten to come here and save you."

"So why did you…?" She trailed off, not understanding his logic. He had said earlier that he didn't care about Ganondorf's revival. She didn't understand why he had convinced her to use the crystal.

"To keep Amageten oblivious." He responded with a shrug of his shoulders, as though he had read her mind. "And to have fun with you." He smirked maliciously at her, "Mostly that last one though."

She shuddered at the enjoyment he had taken, and still took, in tormenting her.

"But why do you want your Master dead?" She asked after a length of time.

"Because, I don't like him very much. He's always known of my intentions to kill him, that's why he wanted to keep me away from him by keeping the rooms up here well lit, even in the night. However, I could never do so, that's why I required the services of your hero."

"I don't understand." She said. Umbra wanted to kill Amageten, so what force had prevented him?

"Of course you don't, dear Princess." Umbra said in a pitying tone. She felt as though he were insulting her intelligence again. "But that is why I shall tell you. I am a shadow summon of Amageten's. The only way to keep this physical form is for him to continue to desire me to be at his side, or to have him die while I am still here. But as a summon, I cannot directly harm the one that summoned me, although I wanted to."

They were in silence afterwards until Umbra laughed suddenly. She saw the shadows around him spread out rapidly. She felt as though the room was in the middle of the winter, and she shivered uncontrollably.

"And now with him dead, the restraints he placed on me have been broken!" Umbra exclaimed. That was the second time Zelda had heard his voice change in tone, and like his burst of anger, she was utterly terrified.

"Now, all we must do is wait for your precious hero to come here." Umbra looked up at Zelda and watched the hope come into her eyes. "Oh yes, Princess. We're still in the same building. I left him a bread crumb trail to this room, so he's sure to come here, no doubt of that."

Umbra stretched and held his hand out in front of him, as though examining his unrestrained form. "But I wouldn't expect him to make it past me." He said casually.

Zelda was at once enraged. "What do you mean?!" She shouted. "Link's defeated the King of Evil! What makes you think you can defeat him?"

"Ganon?" The Umbra scoffed at the very thought. He took a moment to laugh wildly. "I am the Prince of Darkness. Compared to me, Ganon doesn't stand a chance. I'm Link's worst nightmare and foe." He paused in his speech. The red of his eyes pierced through her. "Want to know why, Princess?"

His tactics had no affect on her in her rage. "Yes! I want to know the reasons for your arrogance."

"I am he. I know every move he'll make before he makes it, but he will not know mine. You know it already, Princess, that's why you fear me so much. You know who I am."

"No! I don't know! Who are you?"

"If I told you, you wouldn't like it. But I'll answer your question. You'll be dead soon, or worse. Anyway, it doesn't matter really." He walked out of the shadows and the cloak fell from his shoulders, casting his entire form into the light. Zelda collapsed to her knees.

"Oh goddesses, you're..."

* * *

Any guesses?


	41. Chapter 19 Shadows

Caliginai, comes from caliginous. Dictionaries were invented for a reason.

_**Shadows**_

_There were many creatures that formed in the Golden Lands after their creation. Such a race was the Caliginai, a race of complete darkness. They were the shadows of the fairer creatures in the Golden Lands. They were the manifest of every dark and good aspect of the beings they were derived from. Depending on how close those beings were to the light, decided how great their Caliginai's darkness would be._

_The Caliginai were banished to the Nebulous, a realm attached to the Golden Lands. There was no light there, and all of the shadows were merged as one, they were not separate in being, but they had individual personalities. From there, only powerful summons could bring them temporarily into the Golden Lands as a mere tool. Never before had a Caliginai been brought completely from the Nebulous._

* * *

Link climbed flights of rooms and found his trail often doubling over itself. He was brought to what seemed to him to be a hundred dead ends as he climbed upwards. Link was made anxious by the lack of enemies in the room. He was left to wonder if Umbra had truly remained in this place.

"Hey." Navi said to Link after three hours had passed. "Don't worry. She's here. I can sense his evil presence, but it's really high up."

Link nodded and continued his climb. Then he remembered something Roke had told him. This tower was much like the River Guide. That meant there was a room below that would take him to the top. Link turned around and went down the stairs. He speed was much greater as gravity was now on his side and he knew the path back to the lower floors.

He found his way back to the room he had faced Amageten. Link ignored the corpse and examined the room. Blended into the floor was a trap door, much like the one in the River Guide. When he came into the room, Link found that it was swarming with enemies. Link knew that he had reached the right place and fought the enemies.

Link was bothered by the fact that they were shadow monsters, but they resembled faces that he had seen before in his life.

Several looked like shadowy representations of the Kokiri, others the sages of Hyrule, and other nameless souls he had helped over the years.

When he was finished, Link drew a breath and walked to the door in the wall he faced. It opened to reveal a circular transportation device. Link walked into the room and sat on the floor to rest. If he was to face and triumph over Umbra, he could not rush into battle with that foe.

While he rested, Link pondered over who, or what, Umbra might be. He seemed to be a creature of shadows, much like what he had just faced. His moves were like his own, but more malicious. The same could be said about Umbra's handwriting. And, he realized, Umbra's voice sounded like a much more sinister version of his own. Link's eyes widened as he realized what, and who, Umbra was.

* * *

"Oh goddesses, you're…" Zelda breathed on her knees looking up at the shadow of a man before her.

"But you've always know this, Princess." Umbra said as he walked over to her. His red eyes pierced her mind. His smile was flattering, but promised untold horrors for her.

Zelda was overcome by a nameless dread of the man before her. His clothes were a darker version of Link's. His hair was silver. When he leaned down and placed a gauntleted hand on her shoulder, something weak within her cried out as she jumped.

"I mean, you've always known it. You could tell, I remind everyone of a darker version of your hero. Master Amageten was kind enough to comment on it once." He snickered at her lack of ability to respond to him.

He watched as she held onto Lei's Crystal tightly, out of fear. "What, are you going to use that on me?" He asked. Zelda jumped and looked down at the crystal that she held. Her grip tightened.

"No," Umbra said as he lifted her chin up to look at her face, "I don't think so. You're far too frightened to do anything of the sort right now. But just in case." With his other hand, he reached down and plucked the crystal out of her grasp. He threw it onto his cloak without looking back and smiled at Zelda.

"Come now. Your hero will be here soon. I don't think that you want to be like this when he's killed, now do you?"

Her body shook as he talked. Zelda's mind raced, trying to figure out why he scared her so much. Now she knew who he was. He was no longer and unknown force, she knew exactly what he was. That should have alleviated her fears, not intensified them. Zelda realized that she had always secretly suspected him of being related to Link somehow. All his mannerisms had reminded her of a more verbose and cynical version of the Hero of Time. She realized she was scared because of the idea that anything to do with Link could be so evil.

Umbra stood her up and she trembled.

"Come now, there's no need to be so afraid of me, Princess. I shall do you no harm." He told her.

She shuddered and finally found the courage to speak to him. Her voice wavered as she spoke. "There are other things that you can do without physically harming me."

"Quite right." He told her and patted her on the shoulder. "You're finally catching up."

"But you won't survive. You're merely Link's shadow, you cannot win against him."

Umbra's shoulders shook and he seemed to be covered in black flames. Zelda thought at once that she should not have said that. His voice was oily and ice cold when he replied. "I am no mere shadow, Princess. What your hero faced in the Water Temple was a simple shadow that Ganondorf conjured up. I am so much more than that.

"I embrace the darkness that he holds at arms length. He fears the darkness of his own soul. I am that. I am the physical manifestation of what he fears. Every thought of anger he has had is my rage. Every perverse aspect of himself which he hides from is me." His hand trailed down her body, and Zelda trembled at the intent. "Everything. Hate, anger, rage," He paused and smiled slowly at her, "lust."

Zelda's eyes widened and she lifted up her hand. She struck him, backing the blow with magical force. Umbra was sent backwards several feet and he landed on the ground. Umbra stood up and laughed at her. She backed away from him. His anger quelled as he relished in her fear.

"But there's more to it then that, Princess. I have his every memory, everything he knew up until the point that I was summoned, and I even know more then that. There is a connection between him and me, you see. I can see what he sees when I concentrate, and while he sleeps, I peer into his dreams and memories. I know every tactic and move that he knows. But I am so much more then that." He straightened his body and motioned to himself with a hand. "I have tactics that I developed on my own. I have moves and abilities he does not comprehend.

"If your hero was not so utterly frightened of his darkness, he could do to me what I do to him. He could find out what I shall do and know. He might even be able to keep secrets from me, if he just accepted his darker aspects." Umbra walked back over to Zelda and spoke to her, "But he's just so afraid of me. And now it is too late for him to remedy that situation."

Zelda started up at Umbra, helplessly afraid of him. He bent over and placed his mouth next to her ear. "That is why he cannot win, Princess," Umbra whispered to her.

Link stood and walked into the transporter. He felt himself dragged up the length of the tower. He looked at Navi, who rested on his shoulder. He had told her what, and who, Umbra was. She hadn't reacted as well as he had hoped.

Navi had started and yelled at him for believing that he could be capable of anything that Umbra could do in any form. Link had wanted to agree with her, but he had known otherwise. He knew what the darkness in his own heart was capable of. That was the reason why he eschewed it and kept it out of his character.

"Unable to win or no, your hero will come to rescue you. He draws ever nearer. Whether or not he realizes that this fight is hopeless, I don't know or care. It will give me what I want in the end." The Shadow of the Hero said as he leaned against a dark wall.

"And what is it that you want?"

Umbra turned his glance towards Zelda. He smirked at her and she saw his tongue poke through and lick his lips. She shuddered. "Your hero's death." He said. "I want to taste the salt of his blood and see it drain away from his body as he dies." He stood from the wall and walked over to her.

"And then I want you, Princess." He placed his hands on her shoulders. She tried to back away, but his grip was too powerful. Zelda looked up at him in fear. He brought his face near to her ear.

"I want to see how dark your heart is. I want to see just what sort of deviation and perverse actions the Princess of Destiny is capable of." He whispered. A chill was sent down her spine.

Her eyes widened as his mouth met hers. His fingers dug into her arms and she could feel some form of darkness overshadow her vision.

* * *

Link landed on a stone floor miles above in the air. He once more had to walk outside and circle around the tower's top. He entered a narrow room. He surmised that it was as tall as the room he was about to enter, but it was only four feet wide. Link drew a breath and prepared himself for whatever he might see when he entered the room.

* * *

digitails dot deviantart dot com /Link-ness-48290127

As a side note for maybe some clarification. In case you're interested. Just replace the "dots" with periods, 'cause FF is a pain and won't let me post links

And who hates Umbra?


	42. Chapter 20 Light

_**Light**_

_Creatures of the light are the beings created by the Golden Goddesses. They are blessed and cared for by them. Faeore loves them as children. Nayru guides them with her laws. Din protects them with her strength. And I guide those three with my insight into the future._

_These beings have an incomparable inner strength. No matter what, they have always triumphed over every ordeal they are given and strive on in the face of death and danger. There is a reason the goddesses love them so._

* * *

Umbra pulled away from Zelda, licking his lips. His smirk was full of malice and sinister joy. Zelda tried to raise her hand to strike him, but found her arms chained to her sides. She could not move them from the position Umbra had put them into. She could not narrow her eyes into a glare. The Princess tried to figure it out, and found her breath had been caught in her chest. What dark spells had he placed on her now?

As her eyes looked around, the only muscle control left to her, Umbra's smirk turned to a malicious grin.

"Do you like it, Princess?" He asked her, voice full of that sinister joy that flowed over his face. "Oh, that's right, you can't talk, can you?" He only snickered evilly as he sunk backwards into the shadows.

At that moment the doors broke open. One similar to Umbra's appearance strode through. The only difference was in coloration and the fairy that fluttered around his head. It was Link.

The Hero of Time took one glance around the room and stopped his glance upon the princess. He ran towards her. He stopped a foot away with eyebrows furrowed. By now she normally would have spoken, or at the very least moved. His nerves were instantly put on edge; he strained his ears to hear the slightest sound.

The shadows shifted, there were faint footsteps as Umbra stepped out of the shadows near Link, but behind him. Link whirled around; spinning to face Umbra, hand on his hilt.

"I wouldn't do that, if I were you." Umbra said as he circled around Link, moving towards Link's left. Link frowned, facing down the red eyes that showed the opposite feelings of his blue ones.

Navi took in breath to speak, but Umbra cut her off. "If he wants to speak, let him talk for himself, pest." He focused on Link again. "Do you know who I am?"

Link frowned. He nodded and waved back towards Zelda. He pointed towards Umbra with his index and middle fingers, brought the hand back towards his body and flicked his fingers into a splayed position.

"Ah, yes. I had forgotten your sign language. All I did was place a curse upon her. Do you know what I am?"

Link nodded. He tapped his right collarbone four times, waved towards the shadows Umbra had emerged from, and lifted his right arm to parallel to the ground. He pointed towards Zelda again, pointed towards Umbra, formed a fist and splayed his fingers once again.

Umbra merely smiled at Link.

Zelda had been barely paying attention to the conversation. Her lungs had begun to burn for a lack of precious oxygen. She couldn't concentrate on the conversation between the two before her.

"As to what I did to her, as you've so kindly been inquiring." Umbra said, taking a few more steps to Link's left. Link turned to keep both eyes on the shadow. "I placed a curse upon her, to keep her from interfering. However I'm afraid that I might have placed on her too strong." Link caught the subtle tone of sarcasm in his voice, "The curse has prevented her using any of her muscles, including the ability to breath. It's amazing that her heart still beats." His tone had become condescending.

Link turned a worried eye to Zelda. Her face had begun to turn a delicate shade of blue during their conversation. He turned to face Umbra again. He began to lift his left wrist, but Umbra cut him off.

"I'm Umbra by the way. I'm quite a lot more powerful then the shadow of yourself that Ganon created." He waved towards Zelda, "Since I know how terribly concerned you are for her. I'll tell you how to save her, for the moment." He grin he gave the Hero was feral as his eyes narrowed. "Right now she can't move a muscle unless either you or myself moves her. Which means…"

Link frowned at the thought that caught his mind. How could he make her breath?

"Ah, not allowing yourself to think properly, as usual. Just think about it. You have to give her air." Umbra smirked at Link's hesitation. "If you refuse, then I guess I'll have to. And you should know that I have no such reserves."

Link glared at him. "I think I'd rather do it. Din knows what you'd do."

Umbra nearly broke out into laughter, "I don't think she does, but you surely do."

Link glowered at Umbra and walked over to the Princess. He looked at Zelda apologetically as he slackened her jaw and covered her mouth with his. He breathed into her three times.

"Don't you want to go so much farther?" Umbra jeered. "I could wait."

Link turned around immediately, sword drawn in an instant. He lunged at Umbra. The shadow stepped to the side and, as Link looked around, moved to Zelda's side. He stroked the top of her head and leered down upon her.

"Our battle will be quite the long one. I'm concerned that she might die while we fight. Why don't you just give up and let me kill you right now? I promise that she'll live." Link didn't let his guard down for an instant. "No? Very well." Umbra leaned down and whispered into Zelda's ear. Link furrowed his eyebrows, but kept his focus on Umbra.

"I've done nothing to help or hinder her life. The only thing that will save her now is the end of this battle, either way." Umbra said as he walked over to face Link. He drew his wickedly twisted, black, sharp blade and a shield of shadows coalesced over his arm.

"But I can guarantee you that I shall be the victor." Umbra said as he leapt at Link.

Link brought his sword up to block and tried to jab Umbra with the point of his shield. Umbra deflected the blow with his own and thrust it forward, making Link stagger backwards.

"What makes you so certain?" Link asked as he blocked another strike from his shadow.

"Nothing, save for one fact." Umbra replied as he overpowered Link. The hero found strength to send Umbra staggering away from him. He lunged forwards immediately and thrust his sword at the shadow. It struck the shield. Link dropped to the ground to avoid a horizontal swipe from Umbra's sword. He rolled backwards and jumped to his feet.

"I am exactly what you fear."

"I don't fear what is in front of me."

"It seems that you don't understand." Umbra replied calmly as he formed a shadow orb in his hand. He sent it into the air and struck his blade against the orb. It flew at Link. The hero cleft it in two.

"I am your every deviation that you've shied from. I know everything about you, but you know nothing of me."

"Lack of knowledge about my opponents hasn't stopped me before." Link replied and rushed at Umbra. He grazed the black sleeve that his shadow wore.

"Yes, but none of them have known what you're next move would be, before you make it by matter of prediction. And I know that as a fact." He sneered at Link and vertically struck at Link. The hero raised his shield, blocked the attack, and lashed out with his sword. He hit Umbra's abdomen.

Umbra backed away as shadows steamed up from the blow Link had delivered.

"Oh no. With that light blade, you might beat me." Umbra said. Link kept his guard up, sensing the shadow's sarcasm. "Very well. No more fooling around." He raised his arms. The shadows he had forcibly formed earlier sprang to his body. He was surrounded in flames of black shadows. Link could make nothing of Umbra's form, save for the gleaming red eyes.


	43. Chapter 20 Light 2

Umbra rushed at Link. Link was barely able to bring his shield up in time to block the attack. He was forced backwards and to defend himself from a vicious series of strikes. Link eventually brought his shield up and threw his body into the shield. He knocked Umbra over, but also found himself flying to the ground, inches from Umbra's fallen body.

Link saw Umbra jump up to his feet in an instant. Link had to roll around on the floor as his shadow struck at him relentlessly. He gathered enough velocity in time to fling himself onto his feet. He grabbed the hilt of the Light Blade with both of his hands and found his body covered in the same icy blue flames that the sword created. He then held the blade in only his left hand and readied his shield, the flames remained.

Umbra seemed to be taken aback, but he rushed at Link once again. The hero brought his blade up, body adjusting to his opponent's celerity. Link pushed Umbra back and swung his sword at Umbra. The shadow blocked with his shield and thrust at Link with his own sword. Link used his shield to block. The sword slid off to the side. Umbra swung again, but Link twisted his arm uncomfortably to use his shield to block the second strike.

After a moment's stand still, they jumped away from each other at the same time. Then they rushed forwards again. They seemed to have the same thought at the same time. They both unleashed a magical attack with their sword inches from the other. There was an explosion of chaotic energy.

Link and Umbra were sent flying backwards. They both landed on their backs and stood up simultaneously.

Umbra cackled. "Good job, Link. You've embraced the darkness of your own heart to predict me. But that won't change the end result." Link merely narrowed his eyes at the shadow. "Fairy got your tongue as usual? Very well."

Link crouched for an instant before rushing at Umbra. The shadow moved towards him as well. They met in the center of the room, at odds with each other again. Their eyes met and they glared at each other with an intense hate, wishing their looks to kill the other.

Link heard a noise from where Zelda had been. He quickly cast a worried eye at the area Zelda was. She was standing, eyes wide with fright and a paler color then usual, but she looked alright. He felt a jabbing pain in his torso, near his heart. Link felt Umbra pull his sword out of him and realized his folly.

"Good try, Hero. But you're far too predictable." Umbra said as he backed away, allowing Link to fall to his knees. "I knew that you'd be distracted if I had a quick shadow summon make any form of noise by your precious Princess. This fight is over."

"Cheap bastard." Link coughed out.

"Oh well. I'm not the one who's gonna die." Umbra replied casually and walked away from Link. "And now I'll let you watch as I take your Princess from this place, no one will ever see her-" Umbra was cut short as Link hurled his blade at the shadow while his back was turned. The shadow was dispatched into wisps of smoke and a blood-curdling yell of anger.

"Two can play at that game." Link whispered between coughs. Umbra had gotten his lungs. No potion he had could save him from that sort of injury. He collapsed to the ground and rolled over. He looked up at Zelda.

"LINK!" Navi cried out as she flew over from Zelda, whom she had been giving her feverish attentions. As a forest fairy she was not as adept at healing as a fountain fairy, but she was able to keep Zelda from fainting during the battle. "Oh, Link." She whispered sadly, realizing nothing could be done to save her ward.

"Link!" Zelda exclaimed as she too ran over.

Navi hung in the air; Link could tell she was worried by how anxiously she flapped her wings. He looked up at Zelda and smiled.

"I didn't know you could talk." She said quietly.

"You must have figured, since Umbra never shut up." Link coughed out. He swallowed the blood his lungs were trying to expel. He didn't want Zelda to see him that weakened.

"Yes, I did." He saw tears well up in her eyes. "Why did you come, Link?"

"I had to save you," He said. He lifted his hand up and brushed away her tears. "You're the one the goddesses chose to rule their lands. I couldn't let you die."

"But," She began.

Link shook his head and placed a finger over her mouth. "I've cheated death a lot. Besides, I'm a fighter." He looked at her eyes as he choked back a fit of coughing. "We always die in battle."

"No." Zelda said as she pushed his finger away. "I will not allow you to die, Link."

Link raised an eyebrow. He didn't feel she was in much of a position to argue. He could already feel his waking thought leave him.

He watched Zelda rise from where she had knelt down next to him. "You're the hero of the goddesses, Link. I need you." He saw her bend over and pick something up. She turned around, holding something in her hands.

"I only pray that the goddesses don't condemn those that make pure wishes upon this." She said as Link squinted his eyes to make out what it was. His eyes widened as he realized she held the object that had killed her in his dreams.

A fresh wave of adrenaline poured through his body as he tried to rise and rush over to her. "Zelda! Don't!" He cried out. But it was already too late.

Either from his wounds or Lei's Crystal, Link's vision vanished into a flash of white light, and then he saw no more.

_**END**_

"The Legend of Zelda: Lei's Crystal" Extra Comments by the Author

Don't you just love me? No, seriously. I'm expecting the answer to be not in the slightest, by the by.

Before you freak out on me for that ending, please, please, please hear me out.

There's a sequel. It's up right now. Look at my page.

Oh, and check out the "Lost History" Chapter at the end of this

.:Digi:.


	44. LOST HISTORY

SIDE NOTE: This has NOTHING to do with the plot at all. The Link, Ganon and Zelda mentioned here are entirely different from the ones mentioned earlier on. Maybe you'll figure it out.

* * *

Dark winds blew across the lands, sending chills through the people that lived there

Dark winds blew across the lands, sending chills through the people that lived there. The shadows grew as the night came onwards through the sunset. They boiled and formed large monsters. Innocent people that lived in small villages across the land were destroyed, torn limb from limb, and eaten. Screams filled the night air, as they always had. Fires flickered as the foul beasts trampled the ground and make the ground quiver.

A group of three people stood on a hill, overlooking one of the villages. The one in the middle stood in front of the other two, a large double helix blade with extremely sharp edges rested on his shoulder. Motes of purple and blue energy floated up from it. His pupil-less white eyes gleamed in the twilight.

"Link," the man on the left of the one in the middle said. He too had the same pupil-less white eyes and the red and blue face paint. His hair was white. The man in the middle looked back at him and pushed bangs that were as white as pure snow out of his face.

"What is it, Ganon?" The one called Link asked.

"I wonder, what do you want to do about them?"

"They've been like this since they first existed. No matter how many that we destroy, they always return."

"Yes, but there is no sense in not trying to save the citizens of these lands." The one on Link's right said. She had the same white hair and eyes and face paint as the other two. While the two men had swords, a large black bow was strapped onto her back. "We were sworn to protect the denizens of the Golden Lands. That is our duty."

"I'm well aware," Link grumbled to her. "The only way to truly save them is to kill them, that way there would be no Caliginai to run rampant every twilight. But we can't do that." He walked down the hill shaking his head. "Zelda, Ganon, let's get rid of the larger ones in the area."

"Alright." Ganon said as he pounded his fists together with a smile. "They don't stand a chance." He too descended from the hill and walked more towards the left so as to have a different angle of approach on the caliginous creatures.

"Very well, Link." Zelda responded. She pulled the bow off of her back and walked towards the right. "With our combined strengths we should be able to save many of the villagers." The group of three descended from the hill and set off to their work.

-

"So, Link," Ganon said as he waked up to the tall white-haired man over a year later. "Didja hear?" He sat down in a chair.

Link nodded, his large blade rested on the wall that he was leaning upon with crossed arms. "Zelda informed me first, Ganon. The goddesses have agreed to seal away the Caliginai into the Nebulous, the realm they inhabit in the daylight."

Ganon punched his right his into his left palm. "That's exactly what she said. So then all we're going to have to do take care of their pets."

"Caliginai have strong pets, that should occupy us for a while." Link responded.

"And then what?"

"And then what, what?" Link inquired.

"What then? Our job so far has been to keep the Caliginai under control. What do we when they're gone and so are their pets? We'll be around for a while."

"Our duty to the goddesses is to protect the other citizens of the Golden Lands. Now that they are becoming civilized in nature again, I'm sure that we'll be needed to keep them from feuding over land and destroying themselves, as the first of the Hylians did. What do you desire to do, however?"

Ganon shrugged and leaned backwards. "As long as I have my strength and I'm the second strongest in the Golden Lands next to the big Hero, I'm good."

Link scoffed, "Anything else?"

"Hey, we're always going to be in control of things, so I don't care. All I need is something to do to keep myself from getting bored."

Link nodded and bowed his head with eyes closed. While standing with his arms crossed he drifted into an uneasy sleep, dreams pestered by the evil winds that the Caliginai stirred up.

-

Link walked into a room filled with over a hundred people. They all had white hair and pupil-less white eyes. Their faces had red and blue paint in different designs. On his right was Zelda and his left was Ganon.

"Now that the Caliginai have been sealed away into the Nebulous by the goddesses, only their pets remain. It's been a year and we've taken out a lot, but I recently learned where the rest of those shadow beasts are with Zelda's wisdom. Ganon will be taking care of the one plaguing the northern dessert. Zelda will destroy the one in the absolute north. I will take the one in the eastern forest. Those are the strongest, but there are more to deal with. As for the rest of you," and he proceeded to give out the orders to the multitude of others.

-

It was dusk when he arrived in the eastern forest. Forest sprites, whose forms were chosen by their own will, inhabited these woods. They recklessly ran through the trees, unaware of the dangers that surrounded them. Their guardian, an ancient tree blessed by Faeore, created a barrier that kept dangers out of the deepest part of the woods. People lived in small settlements around the forest's edge, but they were not given the same protection as the forest sprites.

He hefted his sword in both of his hands and carefully walked through the woods. This was the time that those beasts came into existence to run amok and destroy things. He carefully listened to his surroundings, trying to pick out the noises of a shadow beast.

After several minutes he came upon it. The shadow beast was twice his height. It stood on two legs and was hunched over. It was large and had enormous muscles. Three horns curved back from its head. The creature was holding a person in its grasp. Link quickly lashed out with his sword. He surrounded it with light energy. It cut through the beast. The woman landed on the ground with a screech.

She looked up at Link. One glance at his stern face and she screamed again. She ran to the line of trees. Link sighed and began to let go of the hilt of his sword with one hand, then he noticed that the form of the beast was imploding and forming a more human figure.

"Umbra!" He snarled as he recognized the figure. Before him stood his mirror. Red eyes gleamed maliciously back at him through silver bangs. His face had no paint and he was adorned in black clothing. He formed a twisted sword with a wickedly sharp edge from the nearby shadows.

"Yes, Link." He said calmly and innocently. The two began to circle.

"You! How are you here? Your kind was banished from these lands by the goddesses." Link said in a low growl.

"Simple. I merely outwitted your precious goddesses, Link. I destroyed my pet, possessed its body and took control of it completely. Your attack bLink through my disguise. Oh well. Now I can screw those Hylian women around a lot easier."

Link narrowed his eyes at the shadowy figure. He lunged at Umbra with his sword. The shadow parried the strike leaned back to kick Link in the chest. Link leapt backwards with the kick to take as little damage as possible. He landed on the ground and lashed out with a magical strike. Umbra swiftly countered with a wave of his own dark energy.

Their battle waged on for hours. It lasted through the entire night. It was near daybreak when it seemed to be coming to an end. Link had several injuries, many of which had healed throughout the course of the fight. Others were deep and severe, but not life threatening. He had deflected all lethal blows to be less serious. Link and Umbra jumped apart after blocking their opponent's strike with one of their own. Link panted as Umbra absorbed the energy in the shadows to restore his strength.

"Did any of the other Caliginai do what you did, Umbra?"

"Curious how many of your people that you fated to death by their own mirror?" Umbra inquired with a sadistic smile. "Two. Xeilia and Keir. Odd story, you sent Zelda and Ganon to go fight them." He grinned, showing his sharp teeth, "Don't you just love fate?"

"Yes, I do, Umbra." Link replied coldly as he stood straight to go on the offensive once again.

"I wouldn't. Sometimes I think that it designs itself to kill you, Link." He said in almost genuine concern. "But I guess that doesn't matter to a big shot like yourself. Big Hero of the goddesses. Leader of the people blessed by the goddesses as guardians. I suppose it doesn't matter that every other being in the Golden Lands thinks that you're the antithesis of the goddesses, and as dark gods you must be destroyed."

Link merely continued to glower. He did not rise to Umbra's taunt and instead focused most of his energy on one last attack. In the blink of an eye, Link was on the other side of Umbra, sword glowing a brilliant white. His shadow dissipated into a puff of smoke and a yell of intense hatred.

"Enjoy the Nebulous, Umbra." He said caustically and went over to a tree. He sat down with his back against the trunk for support. The long battle had drained his strength. It would be sometime until he could use a magic technique to heal his injuries. He placed his sword on the ground to his left.

The sun began to rise over the horizon in the distance. Link sighed and thought to fall asleep. There was a noise nearby on his right and he looked up sharply, wondering if it was a beast that needed to be destroyed. The young woman that Umbra had been holding from before froze under his glare. She pressed her body into the tree she had hidden behind and quivered.

His face softened into a calm, but serious look. He smiled encouragingly and held out his hand, trying to display the idea that he would not harm her. She seemed to be relieved by this a little and cautiously stepped towards him. When she was close enough, she tentatively reached out her hand and clasped her fingers around his palm. His hand was half again the size of hers. Link looked at her inquisitively. With his face paint, he looked angry. She immediately jumped backwards and held her hand close to her body, hiding it with her other hand.

Link shook his head and continued to hold his hand out to her. After a little while, she again reached her hand and clasped it around his. He mimicked her motion, closing his fingers around her hand and seemed to envelope it. After a moment she moved her arm up and down a few times, he let the motion carry into his own arm. Then she let go. He followed suit. She stood there, looking down at him. Her blue eyes were wide with fright.

Link smiled at her, to try and allay her fears. She was startled and jumped at the expression. He shook his head at her and looked at the larger injuries that he had sustained in the battle. They were still bleeding and show no signs of stopping. He pursed his lips, that was not good. Blessings of the goddesses or no, he could still die.

The woman knelt down softly on the ground. Link looked at her. She jumped backwards at the quick motion and caught her breath. He sighed and focused his attention back to his wounds. He leaned forward, grimacing at the pain caused by a slice in his side, and tried to undo the leather holding his chest armor to his body. In his battle weary and bleeding state, his fingers fumbled with the clasps that were designed to keep it from falling off.

The woman leaned forward and touched his hands. He looked up at her inquiringly.

"Let me." She said quietly to him. Her language was different then the one he spoke, but he still understood what she said.

He nodded his head and she quickly undid the complicated leather cords. Link then lifted the armor off of his body and over his head. Sweat and blood made the ice blue tunic he wore underneath cling to the leather padding on the inside of the armor. He placed it on the ground and grabbed a wound on his right bicep that had begun to act up as he lifted the twenty-five pound metal plating.

After a moment he removed his belt and fished out a small patch of healing herbs and an assortment of cloth strips from one of the pouches. He pulled the icy blue tunic off and under that was a skintight black shirt that was laced in the back. Then he removed the leather and metal gauntlets that protected his forearms.

Exhaustion was eating at his consciousness as he tried to reach back to undo the lacing. He found himself unable to pull out the knot at the base of his neck as he usually did with ease. Once more the woman leaned forward and stilled his fumbling hands. He looked up at her again.

"Let me." She said.

He nodded and bent forward a little more, allowing her to take out the knot and undo some of the lacing. Then he raised his hand to stop her. She sat back on her heels and watched him. Link pulled his arms out of the sleeves and pulled the front off of his body. His chest and the shirt were slick with blood. He sighed and used some of the clothes that he had pulled out to clean the blood off of his skin. Then he smeared the herbs over the open wounds, wincing at the stinging pain, and tied some pieces of cloth over them.

At that moment, exhaustion fully struck him. Link shook his head, trying to stay awake long enough to put his shirt, tunic and armor back on. He managed to get the back of his shirt laced up and knotted with her help again. Then he put his tunic back on. As he leaned over to pick up his armor, his body gave way to his weariness. Link was asleep before he hit the ground.

-

Link became alert several hours later. He looked up at the sky and sat up. He blinked several times in quick succession. He remembered that he had not passed out in this position. He felt something warm blow across the back of his hand. Link looked down and saw the woman that had helped him lying asleep on the ground. Her mouth was near his hand; her exhaling is what he had felt.

He wondered if she had moved him before falling asleep herself. He realized that she must have been up the entire night as well, watching his battle with Umbra. He placed a hand on her head and stroked her hair. Link then looked around, spotted his chest armor, and put it back on. He redid the clasps and then loosened them so that they weren't putting unnecessary pressure on his injuries. Link then found his gauntlets and put them back on as well.

Link looked back down at the woman and saw that she was beginning to stir. He stood up and grabbed his sword. The woman sat up, looked around and spotted him. He stuck his sword in the ground. The woman got to her feet and looked at his face.

"You saved me?" She asked, as though trying to figure out that he had really done so.

He nodded.

"Why did you do that? I thought your kind…" she trailed off.

Link remained silent. He was trying to figure out a way that he could tell her his reasoning without saying a word. She stared at him.

"Why don't you say anything?" She asked. "Do you really have foul intentions?"

Link sighed as she continued to stare at him with some measure of fear. "I'm afraid that I don't speak words that you would understand." He said in his language, which had a stronger and fiercer sound then that of the Hylians. She jumped at the words and understanding shone in her eyes.

"You don't speak the same language as me, do you?"

He nodded his head.

"But you understand me?"

He nodded again.

"Oh. Then I'll ask you yes or no questions. You saved me. Was that an act of kindness?" He nodded. "And that being you fought. You killed him to protect me?" Link thought for a moment and then nodded. Had he left Umbra be, this woman might have been his first victim. "Are you going to leave?"

Link paused. He looked down at where he had been injured. They were sore and he still did not have the mental strength to completely heal them. He shook his head.

"Do you need anything for your injuries?" He shook his head again. She smiled at him. "Alright. I need to go. My family is probably worrying about me right now. Is that alright?" He nodded. She turned and left.

Link sat against the tree he had been leaning against that morning and looked at the sky. It was halfway through the day already. He sighed and wondered how the others of his kind were doing.

Hours later, near twilight, he looked up at a noise from the forest. He saw the woman come out of the bushes, carrying a tray of food. At the sight of the food, he realized how hungry he was. He furrowed his eyebrows, his kind never suffered from hunger pains, and they barely ever needed to eat. He sighed, he must really have used all of his strength fighting Umbra to be as famished as he was.

She knelt down and offered the tray to him. He quirked an eyebrow at the motion.

"I realize that you must not have eaten anything in almost a day now. You must really be hungry. I thought you could use this. It's the least I can do to repay you." She told him. Link sighed and took the tray from her. He started eating and looked at her. She was watching him. He tore apart the bread she had brought to him and held one piece out to her. She hesitated before taking it and quietly chewing on it.

When he had finished his meal he looked at her and bowed his head to her.

"You're welcome. My name is Leith. What's yours?"

He paused and said, "Link." It was slow a careful, so that she would understand it.

"I see. Roke, huh? That's a good name."

He shrugged. It was the goddess's name for him. He had never thought about how "good" it was.

-

The wounds he had healed slowly. His strength returned at a snail's pace. After a fortnight at the forest, Link felt spry enough to try a healing technique on the injuries Umbra had left him with.

Link took off his armor, tunic and pulled the shirt down. He untied the wrappings he had put around the worst wound three mornings ago and found that it was as rancid and unwilling to heal as it had been since receiving the stab wound. The other injuries were the same.

"Nayru, I ask that you grant me strength," he said and held his hand out over the largest and deepest of the wounds. A pale blue light shone from his fingers and sparked between the gaps of his fingers like electricity. They grew in number rapidly. When the hum of electric sparking had become like the sound of a swarm of bees, Link placed his hand against the wound. A yellow discoloration, which had come from infection of the wound, dissipated, leaving a red color on the inside of the wound. As the blue electricity poured into the injury, it began to heal lackadaisically.

His strength waned and he had to pull his hand away as the wound looked like no more then a mere scrape, though it still retained the shape it had been given when he had been run through by Umbra. Link panted in exhaustion as he replaced his clothing. It was three quarters through the day.

He stood up unsteadily on his feet and lifted up his sword. Energy floated up from it in sparks of light no bigger than a star in the sky as he held it in his grasp. Link swung his sword, trying to keep his body in shape.

It was several hours later that he heard the screech of a woman cut through the twilight air. He rushed into the woods, the place that the scream had originated from. Link wondered if the Caliginai had somehow broke out, or if one of their pets had evaded Zelda's foresight. He broke through a large bush and onto a path in the forest. He saw Leith pressed backwards against a tree. She was being trapped to the tree by several Stalfos.

Link groaned at the enemies and swung his sword. When the giant blade connected with the Stalfos, it immediately shattered and dropped into a pile of bones. He got in front of Leith and destroyed the remaining four Stalfos. As the last was killed by a single strike from his sword, all of the bones erupted into purple flames as they were taken from existence.

Link collapsed to a knee and dropped his sword once Leith was safe. He grabbed his left arm, the one he used for most of his swinging force, and grimaced in agony. He felt his blood seep through his tunic's sleeve. Link's eyes widened, he hadn't taken any hits in that small skirmish. He grimaced at the thought but he started to remove his armor again.

He found, to his dismay, that all the wounds that had been coerced to stop bleeding from his fight with Umbra weeks ago had broken open, save for the one that he had healed earlier. His eyebrows furrowed and he sought out his healing herbs, and found that he had used the last of them up several days ago when he had changed the bandages again. He groaned, he didn't have the mental strength to heal each of the injuries. Link tried to get to his feet, but found that his legs seemed to be made of sand as they gave under his weight. Link frowned, if he couldn't stand he couldn't gather more herbs to place on the injuries to get them to close up.

Leith placed a hand on his right shoulder. Link looked up at her.

"Let me." She told him as she sat back on her heels. He raised an eyebrow quizzically, wondering what it was that she expected to do. She reached into a burlap sack that she had been holding and pulled out a flute. It was wrought from pure gold, accented in bronze, and the mouth seemed to be made of the truest silver.

Link's eyes widened as he gazed upon the instrument. She bent down near him and began to play a melody. He relaxed as the song continued in length and eventually found himself nodding off to sleep. He opened his eyes in a snap and shook his head. After four minutes, she stopped and put the flute on her lap. She cried out in dismay.

Link raised an eyebrow and looked down at his torso and arms. The wounds had become thin scars that trailed over his body. He looked back up at her.

"I'm sorry. It's just that, usually, there's no trace of any wound halfway through the song."

He placed a hand firmly on her shoulder and smiled at her, trying to indicate that it was alright. All of the scars that he had had before had disappeared. He didn't mind scarring, and he was surprised at how well Nayru's Guidance worked in the hands of a Hylian. He had expected the wounds he had gathered in the fight with Umbra to drag out in their healing. Umbra had a sword of pure darkness, it was able to slice through any enchantment, even ones cast by Nayru's crystal, called Nayru's Love. Wounds created by it festered, infected, and usually caused death. After any of his battles with Umbra, Zelda had been there to heal his wounds, she had powerful magical abilities bestowed upon her by Nayru.

She smiled at him as well after a moment. She held the flute to her and looked at the ground.

"You saved me, again. And I can't even fully heal the injuries you received from the first time. And that's the only helpful thing I can do."

Link shook his head at her and leaned back, forgetting for a moment to put his armor back on. He looked over at Leith again and regarded her. She had come everyday to visit him. She had brought food with her each visit, which he was always hungry for.

She looked up at him suddenly. "Oh dear. I forgot to bring you food. I as so worked up, sneaking my flute out of the house so no one would ask what I was doing with it that I forgot to prepare a meal for you. I'm so sorry. I'll go get that now." She said as she put the flute back into the burlap, twisted it, and began to stuff it into a small wrap about her waist. Link held up a hand to stop her. He was starving, but he didn't want her to go to too much trouble for him.

"What, what is it? Do you…want something else?"

He shook his head.

"You can't tell me you don't want to eat. You act like you're starving to death everyday."

He shook his head again.

"Wait…" She said as she looked at him. "Do you have any friends with others like you?"

He nodded his head. Link wondered why she thought that he wouldn't have friends.

"Have you seen them at all since you rescued me?"

He shook his head again.

"Oh. Then maybe you want me to stay? You've been alone for the past two weeks then and I've only come to bring you food and then I leave after a while longer. I'm sorry, I wasn't thinking that you might want me to keep you company. Maybe if I did that then I could repay you for what you've done for me."

Link laughed. He had never really laughed before, but he broke out into hysterical laughter. Her concern for him was perplexing. All he had done was save her twice. Most Hylians scorned him, even if he had blatantly saved their lives from Umbra or other Caliginai. She also acted as though it were an act that had put her in his debt. As if his duty for the goddesses made Hylians need to repay him.

He stopped laughing after a little while and nodded his head. He would like some company. Throughout his entire existence, he had never been without Zelda, Ganon, or one of the others. He had never been on missions by himself for more then a few hours. Being two weeks without their presence had formed uneasiness in him.

She smiled at the booming laughter and blatantly yawned. He looked at her. She rested her head against his bare shoulders and then he realized that he had forgotten to put his clothing back on. He gently tried to push her off so her could get his shirt and tunic covering his bared chest, but she resisted his attempt. He sighed and let her stay where she was, thinking to move her once she fell asleep.

-

Link stayed several days after that. Even with his injuries healed, Umbra's sword had drained his body of the strength he needed to cross long distances. He had become tired after walking only ten yards. He was unable to return to the main shrine of his people far to the south in his condition. With each passing day, he grew stronger and he grew continually concerned about how they fared without him. He was worried about Zelda and Ganon, and if they had fared similarly against their Caliginai. Leith stayed with him for several hours each day.

After the fourth day of this Leith ran to him at twilight. There were tears in her eyes. He looked down at her and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Roke…I'm…so sorry." She said as her entire body shook. He tilted his head to the side, he had learned what motions meant what to Hylians since he had been forced to stay here due to his injuries.

"I…one of the villagers…he saw you this morning…" Link furrowed his eyebrows, he had heard rustling in the brush near him. But by the time he had looked over and grabbed his sword, there was nothing to be seen. He shrugged it off, many Hylians had seen him over the years, it wasn't as though he were a secret.

"You don't understand, Roke!" She exclaimed upon the motion. "There's been a motion everywhere lately. We just received news of it recently…but…all over the Golden Lands…people are feeling that your kind are the antithesis of the Golden Goddesses. They think that you're a tyrannical race of beings that needs to be overthrown." She paused as Link tensed in anger. Umbra had been right, he had disregarded the remark as it was his mirror saying that, but he could not disbelieve her. She gasped in pain as he was subconsciously crushing her shoulder. He let go and stepped back with an apologetic look on his face.

She rubbed her shoulder with a grimace on her face. "That's probably why. You look frightening, even though you're trying to apologize without saying anything. Your language is frightening due to its intensity. I understand your desire not to speak. And your kind is overwhelmingly strong." She stepped up to him and put her hands on his chest armor.

"I came here to warn you. Since your kind is so strong…they decided that they can't do anything to you right now. They decided to move out tomorrow afternoon after they get some men from the nearby village. You…you need to leave…tonight…now. Right now. You need to get away from here." The tears started to pour down her cheeks. Link shook his head.

"Why not? Why can't you just go?"

He shook his head again. Even if he left right now, he would not be able to get far. She closed her eyes as she began to sob. He held her and knelt on the ground as her legs gave out in her sorrow.

They stayed in that position on the ground for hours. Link held her to him even into the night after she had quelled her tears. She rested her head on his chest armor and tried to calm her fears.

After the sun had long since gone down, Link let go of Leith. She pulled away and looked up at him.

"You're sure that you won't go?"

He nodded. He couldn't leave. She seemed to wither at his resolve. She reached up and put her hands on his shoulders. She pulled herself upwards and pressed her mouth against his. He jumped backwards, but did not push her away. He held her body close to his.

After a moment passed she pulled back and looked at him sorrowfully. "Please. I can't stand the idea of you dying, not after you…you've disproven everything that I believed about your kind. Please, why won't you go?"

Link sighed and shook his head. Trying to leave was pointless, they would find and kill him regardless of his staying or running away. And he would not run like a coward.

She looked in shame at the ground. With his night vision, Link saw red coloration coming to her face. She looked up at him. "Then, could I have one last selfish request of you?"

He nodded.

"If it were possible…I'd like to bear your child so that your memory could live on…for as strange as it might sound, I feel that I love you."

Link nodded. He too had felt a strange attachment to this woman since he had met her nearly three weeks ago.

-

The next morning Link woke to strange noises in the bushes. He got up and grabbed his sword, which had been lying several feet distant from him. He glanced back at Leith and pressed into the woods. He came to the edge and was greeted by several of his men. He smiled as he spotted them.

"I'm certain that this is the area Zelda specified." One of them, Fyfe, was saying.

"Yes, this is the place. I wonder where he is," Another, Mona, responded.

Link straightened and strode out of the woods. The three that were there looked upon him. They stopped and looked at him. When he was near the group of three he stuck his sword in the ground and leaned upon it.

"Link!" The third, Gael, exclaimed. "We just arrived in search of you."

"Took long enough." Link replied dryly. "How are Ganon and Zelda?"

Fyfe jumped at the opportunity to explain, "They're at the Shrine, Link. We found them a little worse for wear. We heard that the shadow beasts were actually-"

Link cut him off, "Caliginai in disguise. Yes. I'm already aware. I had to dispatch Umbra to the Nebulous. How were they?"

"Zelda was perfectly healed. It appeared that she was able to find Lei's Ocarina in the care of a Hylian man where she was and played a song to heal herself. Ganon was severely injured in his battle, but we found him in the care of a Gerudo woman. We took Ganon back to the Shrine and he is now under Zelda's care."

"Very good. I'm glad to hear that. How fare the others?"

"We are all gathered at the Shrine in complete number. However, we are waiting for you, Link. Why have to stayed for so long after your battle?"

"Umbra's Blade of Pestilence. The wounds drained my strength. I have only recently recovered."

There was motion from the woods. The other Oni drew their swords quickly as they glowered at the source of the noise. Link looked backwards and saw that Leith was pressed against the side of a tree. He reached over from where he was leaning and knocked down the nearest sword.

"Put your weapons down." He commanded the other two. "Do you seriously fear a Hylian woman that much?"

Mona and Gael put their weapons away. "Link, perhaps you are unaware, but the Hylians are-" Fyfe began.

Until Link interrupted him again, "Planning to overthrow us because they believe we are the antithesis of the goddesses." He waved towards Leith, gesturing her to come forward. "This is Leith. When I found Umbra, he was up to his usual tricks. She has Nayru's Guidance, and she's the only reason Umbra's attacks have not been the end of me."

They nodded. When Leith stood next to Link she held her hand out towards Fyfe. Fyfe shifted on his feet as he looked down at her.

"Even if she didn't come in peace, there would be nothing that she could do."

"No, Fyfe. It's a Hylian tradition upon meeting, but it's the same thing, I guess. You shake her hand." In his culture, holding out a bare, or weaponless, hand was a sign of peace. Fyfe grabbed her wrist and shook her hand back and forth. Leith looked in alarm at the Oni. Link chuckled. The others regarded him strangely. He had never more then scoffed around them. "No, Fyfe. Just hold out your hand and let her show you."

Fyfe did as Link told him too. She clasped her fingers around his hand, and Fyfe reflexively did the same. She shook her arm up and down, Fyfe eventually allowed the motion to carry through. When she let go and held her hand towards Mona, the Oni quickly grabbed her hand. Then Leith shook hands with Gael.

Leith looked up at Link and gestured at the other Oni. "They're here to make sure you leave before the townsmen come?"

Link looked over at Fyfe. "Well, can you guys do a transporter spell? I'm still not recovered enough from my fight with Umbra for that. Only reason I haven't left yet."

"Was he truly that formidable, Link?"

"It lasted the whole night before I could dispatch him. The after effects of his sword strikes still linger."

"Then yes. We are here to assist you in leaving."

"Good." He looked down at Leith and nodded. She smiled.

"Alright," she said in Hylian. "Then I'll head back to the village now before they leave so that they don't suspect me of anything."

Link nodded. Leith turned to leave and gasped in horror. A middle-aged Hylian man walked forwards of a large crowd of armed Hylian men.

"Leith. I figured you were up to something, running away into the forest where that dark god was after the town meeting. I didn't suspect that you were trying to help get us all killed though."

"That's not!" She began indignantly. She fished around for words in her rage and could only exclaim, "You're wrong!"

"Of course you think that. They've probably put some sort of enchanting spell on you or something."

"No! You're wrong! He hasn't done anything of the sort!"

Gael looked over at Link. "What should we do, Link? We could easily take them."

"No." Link said. "We are not to harm the Hylians. We will return to the Shrine and remain there for a long time, until they think tat we've vanished from the Golden Lands."

"Right." The three said.

Leith ran over to Link and grabbed his arm. "Please. If you're going to leave, leave now," she begged.

"Leith, what are you doing?" the middle-aged man asked.

Link looked over at Fyfe and muttered. "Think you can transport the girl to the Shrine, too? This won't end well for her."

"Of course, but that's against all the-"

"I make the rules, remember?" He said as he freed his arm and waved her in between the center of them. She moved obligingly. He turned and leaned backwards against his sword. "Just do it, alright? Our duty is to protect the Hylians, no matter the cost."

"At once." Fyfe said. The four Oni and Leith disappeared in a flash of white light.

They reappeared in a Shrine that appeared to be made of white marble. They were in a moderately sized room with four pillars around it and there were several chairs. Ganon sat in one of the chairs and kneeling next to him was Zelda. She had a look of concentration on her face as she was forcing healing energies into his wounds. She glanced up and looked over at Link.

"Link." She said as she finished with Ganon's injury. "You're alive. Good to see you back." Zelda walked over to Link and then saw the Hylian woman.

"Fyfe, Gael, Mona, leave now." Link commanded. The three others nodded and swept out of the room.

"You brought a Hylian with you, Link?" She asked quietly when they were gone.

He nodded. "I thought that she would be killed because she was helping me, and that's against our duties to just have let her die like that." He peered intently at her, wanting her to understand.

She nodded. "That is correct. But I doubt that she would be able to stay here," she held up her hand to Link, "because of our why of life. She would be literally unable to survive with us."

Link nodded. "I thought of that, but I wasn't sure what else to do."

Zelda put a finger to her chin. "I know." She said after a while. "I shall bring her to the northern part of the Golden Lands. There is a Hylian there that is familiar with me. I would be able to communicate a need for him to watch over her. What is her name?"

"Leith." He said. The Hylian woman looked up at Link. Zelda moved over to her.

"Leith," Zelda said while holding a hand out to her and beckoned with her fingers. Leith looked up at Link and he nodded. She took Zelda's hand and then the Oni woman used a transportation spell.

Once the last dregs of Zelda and Leith had vanished, Link collapsed to his knees, face exploding in livid agony.

"Link?" Ganon asked as he slowly got out of the elongated chair he was seated in. He went over to Link and bent down near him, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"It's nothing, Ganon. Honestly."

"Yeah right, Link." He hissed. "The Big Hero of the Goddesses doesn't just collapse in pain for 'nothing'. I'm not that dumb. The only one you'd be fooling with that is yourself."

Link offered a weak chuckle. "Then let me continue to do so, Ganon."

"What happened?"

"Umbra." Link managed to sound out in a strangled voice. His wounds were beginning to open again.

"I know you fought him, but how could he have done this?"

"He connected several good hits…" Link stopped suddenly and bent his head to his raised knee. Sweat trailed down his body. He suddenly fell to the ground and gasped out, "Later on in the fight, near dawn."

Ganon snarled. "His Blade of Pestilence. With one solid hit, it's said to create a wound that can never be healed and it will always drain the victim's strength, it creates a festering wound that causes a slow and painful demise. And he got you several times with that thing?"

Link barely managed a nod. Ganon picked Link up and laid him down on the seat he had been occupying. He kicked one of its feet after standing over Link for a moment.

"Hey. Don't go dying on me. I need to become stronger then you, and I can't do that if you're dead."

Link chuckled. At that moment Zelda returned. She spotted Link and ran over to him.

"Link, what is it?"

"His battle with Umbra dragged on so long that he was weakened to the point that Umbra hit him several times with the Blade of Pestilence."

Zelda gasped and immediately removed his chest armor, tunic and shirt. She used a healing magic on it and smeared some special medicinal herbs onto his wounds.

-

Several months later Link sat in a room in the Shrine of his people. He was seated on the ground, resting against a wall. His sword lay on the ground nearby. Link watched a pedestal in the center of the circular room. Out of the corner of his eye he saw the door to the room open as the pedestal glowed with a brilliant light. He grabbed his sword and stood up, resting the point between cracks in the stone floor. He leaned on it, using it to stand while drawing steadying breaths.

Zelda appeared at the top of the pedestal as Ganon closed the door behind him. All three had morose and drawn faces.

"What did you see?" He asked the two that had just entered. Zelda jumped lightly down from the pedestal and joined Ganon in standing just a few feet in front of him.

"In the Northern Lands the Hylians have formed a bond with the Sheikah. I found Fyfe there. With the help of the Sheikah, they had found where that group was, attacked, and over whelmed them."

"Where is Fyfe now?"

"He is dead. No magic could save him from the magical attacks that were used against him."

He sighed deeply. He had sent the greater portion of his people to the Tower of the Goddesses deep in the center of the Golden Lands. It was large and rose hundreds of feet above the ground. He had felt that by sending them there and ordering them to stay high in the air they would escape the roving eyes of the inhabitants of the Golden Lands easier then remaining here in the Shrine. They had missed their biweekly check in, so he had sent Zelda to see what had happened.

"It was devoid of life?"

"Yes. There was nothing living within the Tower."

Link looked over at Ganon's pain laden and angry face. "And you?" He asked.

"I searched the Western Gate. I was told by Mona that the Gerudo and some powerful witches had attacked them."

"And where is she?"

"Dead." He said simply and spitefully.

Link rested his head against the hilt of his sword. He closed his eyes and swore heavily. The Western Gate was a simple structure capable of holding fifty of his kind. The ones that had not gone to the Tower of the Goddesses had been directed to stay in the Western Gate. It was the bridge between the Golden Lands and the rest of the world. His people were bound to protect it beyond everything else. Nothing from the outside was supposed to enter the Golden Lands, for doing so would usher in destruction on a widespread scale. But now that Gate was unguarded.

"Link, do not worry about what happened to the others. You could not have predicted what occurred." Zelda said gently. "In part it is my fault. I assured you that they would be safe in the Tower."

Link looked up at her in despair and sighed. "You put Lei's Crystal in the top room as I asked, yes?"

She nodded. "It seems that they were unable to find the way there. When they attacked, they all moved down to defend themselves. I believe that they won't find that room, and being in the light as it will for the rest of time, it will be powerless."

"Good. And Ganon, the Light Blade is hidden away?"

"Stowed it under a pile of junk here. No one would ever look for it where I put it." He said cockily. Link nodded. His orange eyebrow twitched as he heard the noise of people outside.

"It seems that they have come here too. I guess the three of us didn't escape their watchful eye." Link said as he suddenly collapsed from the throbbing pain of Umbra's wounds, which had suddenly spiked in intensity.

"Link, stay here." Zelda said. "Ganon and I will send them away. Wait here."

"No, I'll go too."

She shook her head. "Wait here. Your wounds would only make you a larger target." With that she left the room. Ganon followed behind her, giving Link one last look.

* * *

Figure it out? The Link mentioned here is actually Roke, Fierce Deity, or Kishin, depending on the name that you go by. But it's Link in the text, because, well, it would be weird to use the name as it sounds in Hylian rather then the name as it is in Fierce Deity's language. Same deal with Ganon and Zelda. To Hylians the names sound like "Krod" and "Tiza" respectively.


End file.
